Whole Lotta Love
by 1Pagan3
Summary: Sequel to Bring it on Home. Sammy's family is trying to help him heal, but how do they protect him when not every evil is supernatural?
1. Chapter 1

AN: I own nothing of Kripke's creation's nor anything of the CW or Warner Brother's and have borrowed the title from Led Zepplin. Hope you enjoy!

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Labor Day weekend had the Winchester's in full 'spring cleaning' mode to fix the cottage up and be moved in before school started that Tuesday. Knowing that a house needs some work and actually getting in there to get it done sometimes are two totally different things, as they quickly found out. After their first visit and seeing the layout, it was quickly determined that Dean and Sammy would share the loft that was adjacent to a mosaic stained glass window, while John and Mary would take one of the two bedrooms, leaving the other room available for visitors or a hobby/office. They had quickly found that there had been major water damage at one point due to a neglected roof, resulting in the plaster had been being damaged in several places, along with most of the floorboards. So, while most families were having holiday picnics along the lake and cookouts in their backyards, the Winchester's with the help of the Moore's were doing repairs on the house and couldn't be happier to do it.

"Mary, have you seen Sammy? He was going to give me a hand with the pipes in the bathroom." John called out to Mary from the other room not realizing that his wife wasn't able to see too much of anything besides the plaster that she was trying to coax into a tight corner while balancing on a ladder.

"John, he's up on the roof with Jack. Something about needing a lightweight and a hammer…" Penny said calmly waiting for the explosion, and she wasn't disappointed. Before she could even finish her sentence, John had rushed out of the bathroom and was running towards the door.

"What! Sammy and heights don't go well together, he's barely recovered from the last time…" John muttered as he flung the door open, not waiting to hear the rest of what Penny was saying.

Mary started laughing as she made her way back down the ladder and looked at her friend, "Well, I guess we don't have to worry about John accepting Sammy, do we?" she asked as they both walked outside to see what was going on.

John had just made it around the corner to the back of the house when he saw Jack on the roof with a hammer in his hand and Sammy standing on the bottom rung of the ladder. "That should do it Sam, thanks for keeping the ladder steady for me. Hey where did you say you found the hammer?" he asked Sam as he managed to make it back to the ground before he noticed John. "Oh, hey John, hope you don't mind me borrowing Sam, Dean's still busy trying to make sure the loft is safe to put the beds and dressers on."

Whatever he was feeling before, John couldn't help but feel relief now. Sammy was watching him closely and he was safe, happy, and that was all that mattered. "Well, you know he _was_ going to help me in the bathroom, but if he would rather…"

"_Daddy_, you know I'm going to help you, you're just teasing me." Sam said smiling, watching his daddy act as if he was still considering it. John looked at him and nodded, "Ok, you got me. You ready to help me re-plumb the bathroom?" then laughed as he watched his little boy run into the house to get their supplies ready.

Jack watched the interaction and couldn't be happier; he was a little concerned though. "John, how do you think he's going to take to sleeping inside? He's barely used to staying inside just to eat, and how you got him to agree to stay in the bathroom to help plumb I'll never know, but the whole sleeping arrangement… I don't know. He hasn't slept in an actual bed since he got back, aren't you worried about how he'll react once he's actually inside for the night?"

Looking at Mary for a moment John finally looked back at his best friend. "Sammy's going to be fine Jack. We've already discussed it, and tonight we're all going to sleep in front of the fireplace and then we'll see how the rest of the weekend goes." At his friend's skeptical look, John looked thoughtfully at Jack then asked "What's really on you're mind Jack?"

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Sam couldn't be happier; he was helping and not in the way _and_ his family loved him very much. That may not be something that a lot of other kids thought about, but he had always been in someone's way or wasn't helping enough before and he knew that was why no one had wanted him before; because he was bad, no matter how hard he tried not to be. 'I'm going to be the best boy _ever_.' He thought as he quickly made his way through the house and up the ladder to the loft. "Dean… Dean, I'm going to help Daddy with the bathroom!" Sam practically yelled at his brother as he made it to the top step, making Dean smile as he turned to face him.

Dean had been a little worried about doing all the important repair work, not to mention moving what things hadn't been totally destroyed from the other house, over the weekend, but one look on Sammy's face made the work they were needing to get done worth it. He didn't know if anyone else had noticed, but Sammy had been able to walk in and out of the house without having a panic attack, and he had a constant smile on his face since they had arrived first thing that morning. Whatever the cause, he just hoped that it continued because if anyone needed a break it was his little brother. "That's cool Sammy, but try not to get flushed down the toilet, ok?" he teased, and then laughed as Sammy stuck out his tongue before disappearing over the side of the ladder again.

Mary had been listening to her boys and shook her head at Dean's teasing. 'Sammy seems to be feeling better; hopefully it'll last for awhile.' She thought as she allowed herself to think over how Sammy would react to school. 'Please let him be ok.'

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Jack didn't want to have this conversation, but as a friend he knew that he needed to say something. "John, we know that Sam isn't over his ordeal, he hasn't talked about it at all, the only way he sleeps is if Dean's with him and he's in a wide open space. I haven't seen him wander more than five feet from either of you and there's no sign of improvement. The only way that I was able to convince him to come outside was because he knew where you were and that there was a door close by. John, I'm worried. School starts in a couple of days, and he's not ready to be separated from any of you; and you're not helping the situation." Jack paused to let what he said sink in then waited for the reaction he knew was coming, after a few moments he was surprised when John was still looking at him not saying a word.

John knew Jack, had known him for more years than most people kept their cars, and he knew that on the surface Jack was trying to help; it was below the surface that had him worried. He wasn't as dumb as a lot of people liked to think of him, and for his best friend to think that he and Mary hadn't already taken note of Sammy's problems made him wonder what was distracting his friend so badly. Finally he settled his gaze on Jack "It's only been a couple of weeks Jack, what were you expecting an instant success? You're right, he hasn't talked about it, but that doesn't mean that he won't. He doesn't let us out of his sight because he still thinks we'll disappear, it's not a mystery and it's not a crime. As far as school goes, we haven't been able to find any records of him attending school and it's going to take awhile for the school to decide how to handle it. Now, I have to ask you, what has you so turned around that you would really think that we'd set up one of our kids to fail? Seriously Jack, what is going on?"

Not knowing how else to answer, Jack shook his head before he answered "Look John, I'm just worried… for all of you. I know that you and Mary have handled problem kids before…"

"Problem kids? Sammy? Jack, we're not talking about a kid with a record for B & E or grand theft auto, we're talking about a kid who has spent his whole life feeling as if every bad thing that has ever happened to him was his fault, and he still has been able to pick himself up and move on…"

"That's just it John, he hasn't! If you take him out of your secure circle, then he'll fall apart. You can't expect him to get better if he's not able to face challenges on his own. You keep this up and he'll be dependent on you for the rest of his…"

They had been so focused on their discussion that they didn't notice they had company until they heard a shuffle off to the side, when they both looked they saw Sam at the bathroom window looking as if someone had just run over his puppy. "Sammy, I'll be right there, ok?" John told his son knowing that the overheard conversation had to have a devastating effect on the little boy. Looking back at Jack he wasn't surprised to see the horrified look on his face.

"John, I'm sorry. I… We'll leave and let you all have a night together." Then he was gone, barely saying good-bye to Mary on his way out with Penny right behind him demanding answers.

Not waiting for Jack and Penny to get in their car, John immediately went to the bathroom to find Sammy. He heard him before he saw him and that in itself upset John more than anything that Jack had said. Sitting next to Sammy he waited for the boy to acknowledge his presence before he gathered him up on his lap and held him close. "Does Uncle Jack not like me anymore?" Sammy cried out and he curled up in John's lap.

John didn't know how to answer the question, he knew that it was ridiculous to think that Jack was upset with Sammy, but he also didn't know what had caused the sudden shift of opinion. Lost in his thoughts he didn't hear Dean approach and was slightly surprised when he heard the elder son talk to Sammy. "Uncle Jack likes you fine Sammy, he's just feeling a little stressed right now. I bet that you've gotten more sleep than he has in the last couple of weeks, so why don't we just give him a little time to figure things out."

Sam looked between Dean and his daddy and knew that they wouldn't lie to him, so he nodded and quickly got up and went to the tool box to get a wrench. "Is this one the one you wanted Daddy?" he asked trying not to stay upset, he wanted to show Uncle Jack that he could be ok, no matter what.

Feeling very lucky to have his family, John looked between his sons then to his wife who had been waiting at the doorway, before he answered "Yeah Sammy, that one's perfect. Hey Dean, how about you and your mom go and double check that the water's off so we don't flood the house again." As he watched them leave the room, John thought about what Jack had said 'Sammy's stronger than you think Jack, and I'm going to help him prove it to you.'

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AN: Well, how'd you like it? Let me know! 


	2. Chapter 2

AN: Hope you all like this chapter, it's mainly just part of the build up for more later. Hope you enjoy!

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Mary looked out the window and was thankful that Jack has made the repairs to the roof earlier in the day, as she watched a sudden thunderstorm break over their heads sending the county into a flash flood warning. John and Dean had brought in wood for the night and she couldn't help but find it strange that they would be using the fireplace so early in the year. Listening to the rain hit the roof was almost therapeutic for her, almost like hanging laundry out on the clothesline, and after the discussion Jack and John had she was in need of a little home made therapy. Sighing, she turned away from the window to see her little boy curled up in a chair with her husband's leather coat draped over him. 'I guess it's been a busy day for everyone.' She thought as she adjusted the coat over Sammy a little more.

Knowing that someone was close to him would normally make him very nervous, but Sam knew it was his mommy and he didn't want her to know that he had been watching her. He knew that he had fallen asleep earlier and felt bad for leaving some of the work for Dean and their daddy to do, but he couldn't seem to keep his eyes open. When he felt his mommy's hand on his head, he couldn't help but smile and open his eyes. "Hi Mommy, are you sad?" he asked her, wondering if she regretted having to move. Sitting up, he waited for her to answer, and the longer it took her, the more nervous he was getting.

Surprised by the question, Mary could only look at Sammy for a moment to try and put everything in perspective before she answered. "No Sammy, I'm not sad. I'm worried about you're Uncle Jack. How about you? Are you sad?"

Thinking about it for a moment, Sammy decided to let his mommy know what was bothering him. "No, I'm not sad, but I wonder when you won't want me anymore." He said quietly as he slowly drifted back to sleep.

Shocked, Mary looked at Sammy and couldn't think of anything to say or do at the moment. It was as if a bucket of cold water had been thrown on her and she was at a loss about what to do about it. She knew that John and Dean would be back soon with dinner from one of the diner's in town, but at the moment she really wished they were already there to help her with new bit of information.

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Dean was more than a little impatient, he was getting antsy and it showed with the way he kept drumming his fingers on the table. John kept watching him wondering what had the boy in such an irritable mood. "Son, is there something you want to talk about?" he asked hoping to bring whatever it was out in the open before Dean drove everyone around them nuts. When he only got a curt shake of the head for an answer, he knew it had to be something big.

After a few more minutes, Dean couldn't take it anymore. "For God's sake Dad, what did they have to do raise the cow and grow the grain? I mean really, we have to get back, don't they understand we have other things to do?"

John looked at Dean a stunned by the outburst. He shouldn't be that surprised considering that Dean had always been an impatient person, but he'd been getting better in keeping his temper in check, and it was something that he and Mary was proud of. Then it hit him: _He's only been more patient since Sammy's been around._ Trying to hide his smile, John looked across the table and stopped Dean's hand from moving. "Seriously Dean, what's going through that head of yours?"

Dean wasn't sure what surprised him the most, that Dad had noticed that something was up or that he called him on it. Shaking his head he finally said "Dad, we've been gone too long. Sammy's going to wake up soon and what if Mom isn't in the same room at the time, he'll freak. C'mon Dad, you know we need to hurry back." Dean was certain something bad was going to happen if they didn't get home quick, it didn't matter that it was raining so hard they could barely see the Impala sitting right in front of the diner, he just knew that being away from Sammy was a bad thing.

Knowing exactly how Dean was feeling didn't help his unease any, he'd been nervous since they'd left but didn't want to let his son know he was feeling just as uncomfortable.

Unfortunately the conversation he had with Jack earlier in the day kept floating through his head and he wanted to give Sammy every opportunity to prove his old friend wrong.

'What the hell? I can't believe…' he suddenly brought himself out of his musings when he realized what he was doing. "Dean, get in the car, we'll get something on the way back." He said as he walked up to the counter and cancelled their order. 'First night in a new house, in the middle of a storm, and I'm already throwing Sammy to the wolves… I should be shot.'

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Alex Duram was still in his office going over the reams of paperwork that had been involved with the McMillan case. It was bad enough that there was now evidence to show extortion by the hands of Gerald McMillan, but then there was the charges of fraud, embezzling, and let's not forget kidnapping. Now the evidence showed that Barbara McMillan had picked up where her husband had left off including making arrangements for Samuel Winchester to be taken by force which left a mess on the streets of Lawrence and a badly hurt little boy. Too bad she wasn't going to serve any time for any of it considering she was locked away in a mental facility due to a 'traumatic experience'. _Yeah, losing you're mind and blaming 'demons' for everything has a tendency to be 'traumatic.' _

Watching the rain wasn't helping his mood and he seriously wished that he was home not thinking about the past several weeks that involved the unofficial Winchester vs. McMillan feud, but he wasn't so he had to get his head back in the mess that he currently called his office so he could be ready to hear the defense's competency arguments the next day. Wading through the horrendous trail that Mrs. McMillan had left was going to take him months to untangle, and he wasn't sure if it would serve any purpose. It had already been determined that she was mentally ill, and if the therapists couldn't have agreed on that just by her previous actions, her threats to kill the little boy would definitely be a big clue. 'Thank God she'll never get out.' Alex thought as he reached for another cup of coffee and grabbed another victim file from the large stack on his desk. 'How many more people did she and her husband hang out to dry?'

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It had taken longer to get back to the cabin than either John or Dean would have liked, but they had finally made it with dinner at hand to find out that Sammy had woken for a short time, but had gone right back to sleep after talking to Mary. Dean wasn't too surprised to find out about Sammy's thoughts, but John was more that a little upset and it took awhile before he was able to calm down.

While John paced throughout the small house, Mary was getting everything ready for their little slumber party and Dean was sitting watching Sammy sleep. It didn't take long for the little boy to wake up under the watchful eye of his big brother and smile widely. That was the only intro that John needed before he was sweeping the boy in his arms and holding him close. Confused, Sammy could only hug his daddy back and watch as Dean and his mommy finished getting their dinner ready. Afterwards the rain had slowed but the temperature was still chilly so they lit the fireplace and cuddled up close watching the flames dance until while John and Mary took turns telling funny stories, and Dean showed Sammy how to make S'mores until the little boy was dozing in his mommy's lap listening to them talk, the last thing he heard before sleep won the battle for the night was his daddy talking "We will always want you Sammy, we'll be here when you wake up."

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Dean knew that Sammy's statement wasn't just because of a random dream; he truly believed that one day they'd turn their back on him just like everyone else in his life. While they were making s'mores by the fireplace he watched Sammy closely and knew that no matter what had happened to him in the past, his little brother was still willing to put his heart out in the open, even if it meant getting heartbroken again. 'Not going to happen little brother, you're a Winchester now and we stick together; no matter what.'

At his dad's promise to Sammy, Dean made sure that he was at Sammy's side and even thought he knew his brother couldn't hear him, Dean made a promise of his own. "I'll always be here for you Sammy; you'll never be alone as long as I'm around."


	3. Chapter 3

AN: Sorry for the late update... had trouble with the internet last night. Hope you enjoy.

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Mary watched the boys eat their cereal wishing that the new stove had been delivered Saturday as promised. 'I can't wait to get cooking again.' She thought as she looked at the clock for the fifth time in the last fifteen minutes. Today was the first day of school, and even though Dean already had his schedule and supplies packed and ready to go, they still had to meet with the elementary school principal to discuss Sammy and whether or not they would allow him to attend today since there were no school transcripts for him at all. "Ok you two, let's get going. Dean I'll pick you up right after school so meet me at the front entrance as soon as you can." Mary knew that they were early, but she didn't want the first day to be anymore stressful than what is would be already. As they got in the Impala they saw John walking out of the house with a stack of folders in his hands, it took a minute for him to juggle the papers and lock the door, but then he was settling himself behind the wheel. 

"Everyone ready?" he asked looking in the rearview mirror. He knew that Sammy had barely slept all night even though Dean had made sure to stay by his side. He also knew that Dean was just as nervous about Sammy going to school as everyone else. Looking next to him he saw Mary watching him just as closely. 'She doesn't want to do this either.'

Pulling up in front of the middle school caused a series of mixed emotions for all in the car. Dean didn't want to get out of the car, and Sammy didn't want to let go of his big brother. Finally, Dean looked at his brother and did the only thing he could think of. "Hey don't worry, I'll be fine today. You just make sure that mom and dad get you a hot teacher today, ok bro?" he asked while ruffling Sammy's hair then got out of the car and walked up to the school, trying hard not to look back; knowing that if he did he wouldn't let Sammy out of his sight at all today.

Sam watched as Dean walked into the school and truly felt alone. He knew he was being silly, his mommy and daddy were there, but with Dean gone he felt almost cold. "Mommy, Daddy, can I stay home today?"

John and Mary looked at each other then turned around to face their little boy, what greeted them made them more concerned than what they had been in the last several weeks. Sammy had gone from a gentle type of excited to a pale nervous bundle in the backseat. "Sammy, we're not even sure if you'll get in a class today. Right now we're going to go see the Principal, then we'll find out, ok?" Mary told him, watching as the anxious expression barely faded from her son's face. Taking a deep breath, John started the engine and made the turn to take them to Sammy's school, all the while hoping that he was ready for this.

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Dr. Lucy Mayfield had been the Principal at Lawrence Elementary for the last ten years, and a fifth grade teacher for a lot longer than that, so to say that she knew the Winchester family and the children that they tried to help would have been an understatement. She had always known John and Mary to be involved in all the schools that their kids attended, and had never been ones to shirk their responsibilities to alert the faculty of some special need that one of more of the children might need. So when she received a call at home regarding their boy Samuel, she knew that it was going to be big, and she wasn't disappointed. Usually there were strict protocol about enrollment of new children in the district, however after the situation was explained, she knew that normal procedures would be a hindrance so she agreed to an early morning meeting so she could evaluate their son herself.

She had just reached for her second cup of coffee when there was a knock at the door. Never one to stand on formalities, Dr. Mayfield called out for them to come in. When she looked up she wasn't surprised to see John walk in first as if to shield Mary from any harm that might be lurking in the shadows, then Mary coming into sight with an indulgent smile on her face aimed at John. What did surprise her was the small dark haired boy who stayed right behind Mary as if he would get lost if she was more than a few inches from him. Not sure what to make of the boy, she waited until they were sitting across from her desk before she introduced herself to Samuel.

"Samuel, my name is Dr. Mayfield, and I'm the Principal here. I'm sure you have a lot of questions, but I was hoping that I could get to know you a little first. Is that ok with you?" she watched as the boy looked at his parents before he looked back at her and nodded his head. "Wonderful, now first of all, Samuel sounds too stuffy so do you go by Sam or Sammy?"

Sam looked at the lady in front him in surprise, no one ever really asked him that. Most people just started calling him one or the other not caring how he felt about it; not that he knew how he felt about it, but it would still be nice once in awhile to be asked. "Sam, ma'am." He responded not looking at her.

Smiling, Dr. Mayfield looked between Mary and John before she continued. "I have a feeling that this is going to take longer than I thought. How about we find a class for him and get him settled?"

"Uh, about that, there's a few things you need to know about Sammy." Mary said as she took John's hand in hers and let Sammy sit on her lap as they explained the short version of recent events – sans the demons.

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Dean hated having P.E. during the morning, but he couldn't change his schedule so he figured he'd have to deal with it. The class was about to end and everyone was going towards the showers when the coach pulled him to the side.

"Dean, I know that there were some family problems that kept you away from practice this last month, but I wanted you to know that if you still wanted to play ball, I still have a spot for you."

Knowing that the first football game was only a couple of weeks away Dean felt torn between being on the team or keeping his promise to make sure nothing happened to Sammy. "Uh, Coach… can I get back to you on that? I would really like to talk it over with my family."

Coach Sanders had heard all the rumors floating around about the Winchester's and there was even talk about a cross country chase Dean went through with a little brother in tow, so he was determined to make sure that this kid had an outlet of some sort to lessen some of the load he was probably carrying around. "Not a problem Dean, I just wanted to let you know that I still thought of you as a member of the team. Let me know what you decide, alright?"

"Sure thing Coach, Thanks!" Dean said as he made his way to the locker room, all the while wondering what he should do.

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John and Mary had insisted on walking with Sammy and Dr. Mayfield to his classroom, not wanting to leave their boy too soon. It didn't take long for them to get to the third grade classroom and before they knew it they were walking in the door to meet Ms. Chase. After all the introductions were made, Dr. Mayfield and Ms. Chase went out into the hallway to talk while Jessica took the opportunity to run up to Sammy and give him a hug.

"Sammy! I knew we would be in the same class! You can sit by me, come on!" she exclaimed as she started to drag him along behind her, leaving an amused John and Mary to watch.

By the time Ms. Chase and Dr. Mayfield had finished discussing the circumstances of their new student, Jessica had already taken the liberty of introducing Sammy to the other kids in the class and made sure that they all knew that he was her best friend and they all had better be nice. Both Mary and John knew that as long that Jack's girl was around, then Sammy would be ok until he got back home.

As they were leaving, they took another look into the classroom, and knew that Sammy was watching the door closely. Giving him an encouraging smile, they watched as he turned his attention back to the teacher, then followed Dr. Mayfield back to the office to finish some of the paperwork that was needed.

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Sam watched as his parents left and felt sad that he couldn't stay with them, but also knew that he wasn't alone; he had Jessica close by. Looking at his teacher he wondered what Dean was doing.

Ms. Chase hadn't been a teacher long, but she knew when she was being manipulated, and she didn't like it. Yes, she was told all about the new student that had been brought to her class and how it was going to take some time for him to adjust, but the guidelines that she was given were ridiculous. _Make sure he's never alone, he should sit next to the window at all times, and if something happens that he should have a panic attack call his parents __immediately_. She didn't know what they thought could have happened to such a young child, but surely it couldn't have been _that_ bad'I'll keep an eye on him and as soon as I can, I'll make changes accordingly.' She thought, knowing that children needed structure, not coddling.

The hairs on the back of Jessica's neck suddenly stood straight up as she noticed their teacher looking at Sammy. Something was wrong, but she didn't know what it could be, after all, Sammy had been sitting at his desk quietly ever since he walked in so it couldn't be that he was causing trouble. 'Don't worry Sammy, I'll make sure you're ok.'

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After filling out the rest of the paperwork to enroll Sammy and allow placement testing, John and Mary went to their next appointment to meet with the district manager of their insurance company who agreed to meet them at their old house. Knowing that they had plenty of time, they stopped off at a near by diner to have coffee and try to relax a little. It didn't take long for either one to realize that taking a few moments for themselves wasn't working. Looking at Mary John smiled "Well, I think that we're in for a rough day, what do you think?" Mary looked across the table and nodded, not trusting her voice at all.

When they reached the house the man they were meeting was there with a puzzled look on his face. "Mr. and Mrs. Winchester, I hope you don't mind that I took the liberty to look over your property and assess the damage." Noticing that they were looking confused, he explained. "The head office has asked me expedite your claim since it looked like a clerical error on our part that made your agent believe that you didn't have a policy with us."

Mary was more than a little confused. "So, you know that we have a policy with you and you're here to help us with the claim, even though we've been stonewalled by your company for weeks. Why the sudden change in opinion?" she asked, already not liking how this was going. As many conversations as they have had with the insurance company recently, for them to change their minds so suddenly was mind boggling. Finally she noticed that the man before her was turning an interesting shade of red.

"Mrs. Winchester, I understand your concern, and I understand your skepticism, that's why I am here in person. With the police report that I received as well as some interesting audit results within your agent's office, the head office realized that the agent was actually hindering your claim as well as aiding in fraud for other customers. To be honest, our company is embarrassed by what has happened, and we want it to go away as quickly as possible."

John was stunned, he knew there were other things going on, but he couldn't seem to get his head around the turn of events. Knowing that Mary was looking at him just as shocked as he was, he glanced at her before addressing the insurance in front of him. "So, what exactly does that mean?"

"Mr. Winchester, we would like to settle this as quickly and as quietly as possible and I have been authorized to settle this today, right now. If you would like to have an attorney to look over the offer and the papers I have brought, I have brought copies and encourage you to have these looked at today. I'll be in town until this evening and can be reached at the number on the card I have attached to the offer."

Glancing over the papers, both Winchester's stood transfixed then looked at each other. John was the first one to recover, "We'll call you with our answer before six this evening."

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Alex looked at the papers in front of him, and then looked at the couple sitting on the other side of his desk. He was more than a little surprised by what was detailed in the offer, but even more surprised that they had thought to ask him his opinion. Sitting back in his chair he began, "John, Mary, this is a legitimate offer, and under the circumstances and the details laid out in this settlement, I'd have to say it is in their best interest just with the PR standpoint to make you as happy as possible." When he saw their confused expressions he elaborated. "Just by the water damage alone being left as long as it has, even with your efforts at trying to clean it up, if your claim had been processed properly they could have brought in a professional restoration crew to stop the mold from setting in. The longer the water sat there, the more damage has been done. They want to keep what happened out of the public light, especially since they are a publicly traded company. Then there is the whole issue of someone in their employ mismanaging their funds and customers, it would be a public relations nightmare."

John sat there and pondered what it meant. If they accepted the offer they would have enough money, combined with the money from Mike, they'd be able to start building the new shop. He knew that Mary had the same hesitation that he did, if they accepted the offer, it would feel as if they were being bought for their silence in the matter, if they didn't they were just being stubborn. Sighing, he looked at Alex and asked, "So, in your professional opinion, what would you advise?"

Smiling, Alex started changing things in the papers then reached for the phone to talk to the insurance office to advise them of the changes. Finally after fifteen minutes of intense discussion, Alex put the phone down and showed the Winchester's the changes he made on their behalf. "Don't worry, I didn't break any laws, it's my duty as assistant district attorney that all laws and rights of the citizens of my district are protected. I just called to remind them of that. You'll find that these revisions will help put your mind at ease a little."

After taking a few minutes to look it over, both John and Mary agreed to meet the district manager at the diner with the signed papers with the agreement that Alex would be there to make sure that everything happened the way that it was arranged. An hour later, all four of them were sitting at a table making sure everyone understood the finer points of the agreement before John was handed a cashier's check for the price of his house and contents loss, which more than covered the cost of anything that had been damaged, along with something called 'pain and suffering' which neither John nor Mary could figure out what pain or suffering they went through.

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Dean couldn't concentrate all day, everytime his teacher's would ask him a question they would catch him daydreaming about Sammy. Now he was sitting with a few of his friends eating lunch trying to forget the disaster that happened in Science class, afterall what teacher in their right mind insisted on doing a lab the first day of school; thankfully the fire was contained quickly.

"Hey Dean, is it true that you ran away from home this summer and they dragged you back right before school started?" one of the kids from his English class asked from another table, causing people to stop eating a wait for a response.

Letting out a small groan, Dean just looked at the kid then turned back to his food trying to ignore the way everyone was staring at him. He was doing pretty good too until the kid got in his face and brought Sammy into it. "Yeah, I heard that you have another loser in your house, that's why you took off. Your parents chose the pathetic wimp over you…"

The kid hadn't even finished his sentence before Dean hit him full in the mouth effectively knocking him on the floor and splitting his lip. "Nobody talks about Sammy like that, got it? You stay away from my brother, or I'll make you." Then Dean looked around the cafeteria to make sure everyone understood before he left to go to his next class, knowing that he'd have to serve detention by the end of the week.

By the time the Impala pulled up in front of the middle school, Dean was more than ready to go home. As he slid into the backseat, he could only hope that Sammy had a better first day than he did.

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AN: Alright everyone... you know the drill, let me know what you think of this chapter. 


	4. Chapter 4

AN: Sorry this took so long... I was having internet trouble. Apparantly chainsaws and coaxial cable don't go well together - _who knew_? I wanted to thank Mouse and Sammygirl1967 for their input... as alway, it's very much appreciated! Anyway, here you go... hope you enjoy!

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Sam didn't know why his teacher was mad at him, he had been trying really hard to answer her questions, but some were just silly. Who really cared about how many apples and oranges Susie had? Who was Susie anyway, she wasn't in the room with him, but Ms. Chase kept insisting that she needed everyone to help her figure out how much fruit she had in her basket. 'Maybe Susie needs to be in class with Ms. Chase.' He thought as he once again looked out the window, 'I want to go home.'

"Sam… SAM! I need you to pay attention to what I have on the board." Ms. Chase said as she watched the boy once again ignore her. Frustrated, she walked over and touched his shoulder only to have him jump frightened out of his chair. Knowing that the other children were watching, she calmed herself before she spoke again. "Sam, you need to sit down and pay attention to what I'm doing."

Nodding, Sam sat back down and turned his attention to the board that had a lot of math problems on it. Watching Ms. Chase explain that she wanted everyone to work on the problems while she was gone, Sam wondered why his teacher kept looking at him while she spoke.

Finally Ms. Chase left the room and left the kids to do their work. Sam had been working on his problems when a small group of kids broke out in giggles. It didn't take long before the giggles changed to full blown laughter, then one of the boys involved hit Sam on the back of the head with a wad up paper ball calling out "So, you must be the dummy we've been hearing about. Why are you in this class? The 'special' classes are down the hall."

Sam continued to ignore them and kept working, Jessica was a different story though. When Sam turned around, he saw Jessica punch the boy in the nose just as Ms. Chase walked back into the room.

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Dr. Mayfield was more than a little surprised to see Jessica Moore in her office, and not alone either. Shaking her head she had to wonder if she misjudged the boy in front of her. 'Sam seemed to be such a sweet boy.' Sitting down she continued to watch the two children in front of her. "I've called your parents Jessica they will be here shortly. Sam, I called your parents, but haven't reached them yet. So, while we're waiting, how about the two of you tell me what happened."

"Billy called Sammy a dummy, just because Ms. Chase kept catching him looking out the window. Sammy didn't do anything except be quiet the whole time and try to pay attention." Jessica said in a rush knowing that her parents would be there soon and then she would have to go home.

Looking over at Sam, Dr. Mayfield asked "Sam, would you like to add anything to what Jessica said?"

Confused, Sam looked at the principal and shook his head looking down at his hands, then he looked at her and asked, "Dr. Mayfield, who's Susie?" when she looked at him puzzled, he continued. "In class today we were told we had to help Susie figure out how many apples and oranges she had, but it didn't make sense because Susie wasn't there."

It took a moment for Dr. Mayfield to understand what Sam was thinking, then she understood. "Sam, Susie is just a pretend person to help you figure out how to work out the problem."

"So, she's not real" he asked, wanting to make sure of what he was hearing.

Shaking her head she watched as Sam mulled that over then his face brightened. "OH! Ok, that makes more sense." He exclaimed, knowing that he didn't have to pay attention to someone that didn't exist. "I was just confused, can I go home now?"

Just as she was about to respond, there were a knock on the door announcing the arrival of the Moore's. Allowing Jessica's parents in, Dr. Mayfield motioned Sam's family in as well. After explaining what had happened in class, there were mixed feelings from everyone. Although they didn't want any of the kids fighting, it was nice to know that they would defend each other if needed.

Sighing, Jack looked between Jessica and Sam then back to Dr. Mayfield. "Will she get a punishment for this?" he asked, not exactly sure what he should be rooting for. After getting a negative response from the principal with the understanding that it could not happen again, the Moore's were allowed to leave. As Sam was getting up to go with his family too, Dr. Mayfield stopped them at the door and asked to talk to John and Mary alone.

"John, Mary, as you know we have no idea on what level Sam's education stopped. We only put him in the third grade class because of his age, however I'm wondering about moving his placement testing up. He seems to have trouble with abstract thought, and it could be a sign of developmental problems." When both John and Mary jerked in shock, she was quick to clarify "I'm not saying that he is damaged in any way, just that he may be lagging in certain areas that if we can pinpoint them now we should be able to help him move past them later."

Not wanting to risk making anything worse for Sammy, they agreed that he could sit in for testing the next day if Dr. Mayfield could arrange for her to administer them herself. As they left the office and met up with the boys however, they heard Sammy talking softly to Dean "It's true Dean… I am a dummy, now everyone is going to know it."

"That's not true Sammy, you're not dumb. I don't know anyone who can decode a puzzle and find treasure as fast as you, and I don't even know what language you were reading; it took me forever to decipher mine and I know Karen made mine easy. So don't call yourself that, because you're not. I don't care what anyone says, you're not!" Dean insisted as he looked at Sammy trying to calm his little brother down.

Mary looked at John and tried to smile before she walked over to her boys and knelt down in front of her youngest. "Dean's right sweetie, you're not dumb. You might have a different way of looking at things, but that doesn't make you wrong either. Let's go home, and we'll see if we can figure out how many apples and oranges _we_ have, ok?"

So intent on making sure that their son was taken care of, they didn't notice the person listening around the corner.

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"Jim, they should be here soon, are you almost done?" Caleb called up the ladder, wishing that they had started earlier.

Looking over the edge, Jim smiled a moment "Yes, I just finished up here. The boy's beds are put back together and their dressers are in place, not to mention that I finished the protection sigils earlier."

Caleb was grinning at his friend knowing that it would have taken Bobby half the time to lay down the protection sigils and wards in the loft, but Jim was determined to do something to help the Winchester's and make up for some of his own failures to Sam. Hearing the Impala pull up, Caleb went to the window and called out to Bobby, "I hope you're done, 'cause they're here." His only response was a series of grumbling that could faintly be heard over the sound of tools being tossed into a tool box.

By the time the Winchester family had walked in the door, all three men were standing in the living room waiting to show off their handiwork. After seeing the new stove installed along with the repairs already done in the kitchen, Mary was so happy she hugged a surprised Bobby, causing the man to blush deeply. John was smiling because it was things he could mark off his to-do list, although he wasn't too sure about how he felt about his wife hugging another man. Jim was waiting off to the side before he explained what type protection they put around the property and the house itself, as well as the repairs to the loft.

Feeling so happy about how much had been accomplished in such a short time, Mary insisted on all of them staying for supper so they could catch up with each other. It didn't take long for Dean to fill everyone in on what happened during the day which made Caleb and Bobby swell with pride on Dean's protective instincts, while John laughed picturing the lab table catching fire on the first day of school.

After supper, Dean and Sammy had gone outside to see if they could see anymore animal tracks that they had noticed the morning before. Watching the boys leave, Jim turned to John and Mary "I wanted to apologize for allowing you to think that I wasn't going to summon Sam's grandparents. I have to admit, it wasn't something I wanted to do, but for Sam, I would do everything I can to help him." Knowing that it would take time for either of them to trust him again, he held out an olive branch "I was hoping that for Thanksgiving all of you could come to Minnesota for a visit. You'll get to see where Sam spent part of his life, and I know that there are a lot of people who would love to see him and his new family."

John looked at Mary not wanting to make this decision by himself, and watched as she thought it over. After a few moments she nodded "I think it would be a good idea, we all will need a little time away, and I'd like to see where Sammy spent a part of his life."

As the small group of hunters were leaving the cottage to get ready to leave town, Dean and Sammy stopped them to say goodbye. As the boys were turning to go back inside, Jim called out to Sam to ask for a minute, when the boy joined him Jim looked at him and smiled. "Sam, I'm glad you have found your family. Now, I wanted to let you know that I'm looking forward to Thanksgiving, and we'll see you soon." At Sam's questioning look Jim elaborated. "I've already talked to you're parents, and they agreed to come on Thanksgiving. So, we'll get to see each other soon. Maybe we can have a good chess match while your there." Jim added hoping to see some enthusiasm on the boy's face, when he didn't receive it, he decided it was a good time to go.

Watching his friend's leave Sam was stuck in place with only one thought going through his head. "They're sending me back."

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AN: Alrighty then... you know what to do - let me know what you think. 


	5. Chapter 5

Mary and John decided to let the boys sleep in since it was the first Saturday since school started and it seemed that everyone had had a stressful week. Dean was still wrestling with the idea of playing football for the school even though the whole family agreed that he should do it if he wanted. Mary had more than one run-in with people who wanted to blame her and her family for all the hardships that the McMillan's were going through, even going so far as to block the Impala in it's parking space at the Post Office until a security guard chased them off. John had been expecting the contractors to start on the foundation for the new building on Wednesday, but evidently they had been warned off, which meant that construction was going to have to be put on hold until he could either find a new contractor, or do it himself. The most stressful part of the week however was the complete shutdown of the youngest member of their family. Everyone was puzzled by the sudden change, and if that wasn't bad enough, Dr. Mayfield had notified them that Ms. Chase had requested Sammy be evaluated by a 'reputable counselor', to which everyone was adamantly against. Since the first day of school, Sammy had reverted to only talking if he had to and only as much as needed to get the point across, as well as he hardly ate; even Dean couldn't coax another bite out of the boy when he put his fork down. Now they were worried that something was going on at school that they were unaware of, and hadn't had the opportunity to ask Jessica about it, since Jack and Penny had been running back and forth from their house to Penny's parents who were having health problems.

Sighing, Mary finished making breakfast for herself and John and sat with him at the small table in the kitchen. "John, which should we tackle first, the foundation, Dean or trying to find out what's going on with Sammy?"

John had been working on that very question and at first didn't have an answer, and then he had an idea. "Sweetheart, do you think you and Dean can amuse yourselves for awhile today?" he asked, hoping that his idea would do the trick.

Mary watched her husband make his way into the living room and up the ladder into the loft, wondering what he had in mind. At the same time she was hoping that whatever happened today would help their little boy get better.

John didn't know it his idea was going to work, but he had to try something… anything, because he knew that if it didn't, they could lose him to whatever problem he was dealing with. Walking quietly to Sammy's bed, he gently shook his son's shoulder trying to wake him. He was starting to get concerned when a pair of hazel eyes slowly peeked over his blanket. "Shhh Sammy, get dressed quietly and come downstairs ok?" he asked, waiting until he saw the hesitant nod before he turned around and went down the ladder again.

Sam didn't know what to think, he had finally gone to sleep only for his daddy to wake him up and tell him to get dressed. 'I wonder if today's the day I go back to Pastor Jim.' Sam thought sadly, not wanting to leave, but knowing that was what Pastor Jim said was going to happen on Thanksgiving. 'I guess they wanted me to go earlier.'

"Mary, have you noticed Sammy's eyes lately? If I didn't know better, I'd say he wasn't sleeping again." John looked at Mary trying to gauge her reaction, and wasn't surprised to see her concern; they had just gotten him to sleep half way decently after being taken by those zealots who had wanted to use his powers until he was dead. Now it was possible that something they had missed had set him back and all they wanted was the chance to make it right again.

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John had walked away from the house and had gone several feet before he noticed the absence of a certain little boy. Turning around, he saw Sammy by the Impala staring at his shoes. Walking over to him, he called out "Hey Sammy, we won't need to drive, we can walk, ok?" Noticing that Sammy didn't raise his head but followed him anyway, John slowly made his way through the trees.

Sam didn't know what to think, he and Dean had explored a lot of the woods around the house, but they hadn't gotten too far, and now their daddy was taking him further than he had been before. Not really wanting to see where he was going, he kept his head down and tried to follow in the footprints that were being left in the damp soil.

It had taken them several minutes of maneuvering through the wooded area before they came to a clearing with a small pond fed by a creek edging the property border. Puzzled, Sam looked at his daddy with wide eyes.

"I thought we'd get a little bit of fishing in before everyone started to get up and around and scared them away, what do you say?" John said looking at his boy wondering why he saw hope in Sammy's eyes. When Sammy still hadn't moved closer, he motioned for the little boy to pick out a pole. "I had planned on doing this sooner with both you and Dean, but I have a feeling that you and I need a little one on one time. Is that ok with you?"

Watching his daddy pick up a fishing pole and hand it to him, Sam was hopeful that it meant that he wouldn't be leaving after all. Reaching over to get the pole he stared at it for a minute before he looked at what his daddy was doing and tried to copy him. Several minutes and an extremely tangled line later, he was ready to give up and go back to the house and pack.

John watched Sammy try to copy his movements, but didn't have the success that he had hoped for. Smiling, he reached over and took the pole from his son and showed him how to tie on a hook as well as attach a sinker, then they went in search for the best part – the worms. They had quickly found plenty of worms, but Sammy was having so much fun that John didn't have the heart to stop him from digging in the dirt some more. It didn't take too much longer before Sammy was holding out his hand to show him how many more he had found. 'I think this might work.' He thought as he watched Sammy break out in smiles again as the worms wiggled in his little hands.

"Ok Sammy, I'm going to show you how to cast your hook so we can catch some fish." John said as he pulled his arm back and flicked it forward watching as the hooked worm and bobber went flying over their heads and into the water. "Now all we have to do is wait until the bobber goes under, then we'll reel them in."

Not feeling too confident about the whole idea, Sam waiting until his daddy was standing behind him and helped him cast his hook into the pond next to the other bobber. Seeing that it went as far as his daddy's, Sam looked up and smiled when he saw the proud look on his daddy's face. 'He still likes me.'

John knew that this was going to work; after all it worked on Dean when he was having trouble with nightmares when he first started to live with them. Sitting back on the pond bank, he motioned for Sammy to join him and they watched their bobbers float closer to them until it was time to cast them out again. "Ok Sammy, this time I want you to try it by yourself." He watched as his youngest nodded enthusiastically and reeled his hook back in and did everything his daddy showed him. Unfortunately, neither was ready for what happened next.

Sam had made sure to do everything that his daddy helped him do before, but his little arms didn't have the strength that his daddy's did and the hook didn't lift as high; instead it imbedded itself into his daddy's shoulder. Seeing what happened, Sam dropped his pole and with wide eyes covered his mouth with his hands.

Seeing the mixture of shock, fear and despair shining in Sammy's eyes was just about enough to do John in, but before he had a chance to say anything Sammy was running away from him and into the trees. "SAMMY, WAIT! SAMMY!" he called out trying to undo the hook, but wasn't able to reach it, so instead he quickly cut the line and raced after Sammy.

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Ms. Denise Chase didn't like having her suggestions brushed off to the side as if they didn't matter, especially when she knew that she was right. Samuel Winchester needed professional help and his parents were only enabling him. All week he hadn't participated in class at all, and what work he did do didn't make sense half the time. Dr. Mayfield had administered the placement testing and told her that the results were confusing at best, and wanted to test the boy again after he had gotten settled into the school.

'That's just what the boy doesn't need, to get used to a class then be uprooted in the middle of the term.' She thought moodily. She had heard the stories about Sam's family as well as Jessica's, but she wouldn't allow that to hinder her responsibility to her students; no matter what background they might come from.

Looking at what she knew about Sam Winchester she knew that if there was any hope for the young boy, she would have to find a way to help him herself. After hearing his mother carry on about how the boy saw things differently solidified what she had already suspected; his parents knew that he should be in the classes with other children that were Learning Disabled, but they were refusing for whatever reason. No, she would have to take matters in her own hands and find a way around this mess – that's what a good teacher would do after all.

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John had spent close to an hour trying to find Sammy, but it was as if he had vanished in thin air. "God help me if he's able to teleport or something." Deciding that he needed help, he ran as fast as he could to the house calling out to Mary and Dean along the way. By the time he had reached the door, both were standing in the living room looking at him as if he's lost his mind.

"John what's wrong?" Mary asked noticing that Sammy wasn't with him. "JOHN! WHERE'S SAMMY!" she yelled at him 'I can't lose another one, I can't!' she thought as all the scenarios that could have happened flashed through her mind.

"Dean, Sammy ran off into the woods. We were at the pond, try and pick up his trail from there." John said as he went to the kitchen to get a pair of pliers to try and remove the hook that was getting more than a little irritating.

"Pond? Dad, what pond? Sammy and I haven't gotten too far from the house yet. What happened? Is that a hook?" Dean asked trying hard not to completely come unglued at the thought of his little brother in a tree again.

Mary looked at Dean then walked over to help John get the hook out of his shoulder. Afterwards, they all rushed back to where the accident happened and started searching for clues of where the youngest member of their family could be. Dean knew that he should be able to tell where his little brother was, but something felt off. John was trying hard not to panic, he had known just by looking at Sammy this morning that his boy wasn't feeling too well and now he was in unfamiliar woods trying to hide from his family. Mary didn't give a damn about what had happened, she just wanted her boy back safe and sound then they could deal with everything that was going on.

John looked up and watched the clouds gather and darken 'Damn it, can't we have a break here?' he thought as he remembered the weatherman saying that they had a twenty percent chance of rain later that day. 'No one said anything about storms.'

Dean was beyond frantic, he knew something that his parents didn't know; Sammy hadn't been sleeping for most of the week. Oh he'd doze off every now and again, but other than that he was like an owl and no amount of pestering had gotten his little brother to fess up to why he stayed awake. Now Sammy was in the woods, by himself, with a storm brewing, and without a doubt he was exhausted too. 'Not a good combination.'

Realizing they needed to start over and see if they missed anything, they had just made it back to the pond bank when Mary gasped in horror. In the middle of the pond was a thatch of dark hair and a blue denim jacket, floating. Not wasting any time, John and Dean jumped in and swam to the middle, gently pulling the small body onto its back and noticed the bluish tinge to Sammy's lips. Dean was trying to administer rescue breathes and help his dad get them to the banks. Quickly getting Sammy onto solid ground, they started CPR not willing to give up. Finally their efforts were rewarded and he started to breathe on his own, only then did they see the blood and bruise on the little boy's forehead. Scooping the small body in his arms, John took off running to the car with Dean and Mary close behind. It didn't take them long to get to the Impala and rush to the hospital, all the while praying that Sammy would be alright.

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AN: Yeah... you know the drill... feed the monkey. ;) 


	6. Chapter 6

Dr. Lucas had originally been scheduled for the day off, but a colleague with a last minute emergency had him covering in the ER for a double shift and so far it had been fairly quiet; unless you called helping one of the Patterson twins get his hand out of a jar exciting. Stepping out of the ER for a break, Damon was suddenly glad he wasn't camping at the lake like he had planned, it looked like a storm was building, and it didn't take a genius to figure out it was going to be a big. Glancing at his watch he turned to go back inside when he heard something that caught his attention.

The rumbling of a muscle car at full throttle was more than a little out of place in the quiet Saturday morning, but when a black Impala sped towards him at the ER doors, Damon knew who it was and that they weren't people to panic with cause. Calling in the door for a gurney, he had just turned back when the Winchester's had seemingly poured out of the car with a little body in Mary's arms. Not waiting for preliminaries, Dr. Lucas took Sam out of his mother's arms and ran into the ER calling out orders on the way.

Mary's arms suddenly felt cold after holding Sammy in them during the drive to the hospital, and now she watched as Dr. Lucas and his team work to determine how to help her son. She, John and Dean refused to wait in the waiting room and instead stood holding each other as they watched their little Sammy breath shallow and not open his eyes.

Dr. Lucas didn't like what he saw, something had happened to Sam, but he knew one thing the Winchester's didn't have anything to do with it; whoever did this intended to kill him. "Let's get him in for an MRI, call upstairs and tell them that we're coming in hot." He told one of the nurses, then he turned to the family to fill them in. "Let's talk while we walk." He said as the walked alongside the gurney and got in the elevator. "I don't like what I'm seeing, Sam's unresponsive and one of his pupils is blown. We need an MRI to assess the damage, but I'm suspecting a skull fracture which is contributing to added pressure to his brain. You said that you found him floating face down in your pond; do you have any idea how long he was there?"

John was still trying to process what they were being told, so Dr. Lucas had to ask him a second time before he was able to respond. "No, he was out of my sight for an hour, then I went to the house to get Mary and Dean to help me look for him." At Dr. Lucas' questioning glance he elaborated "We were fishing and he hooked my shoulder, he took off before I could tell him that I was ok, and we had been looking for him since." John was devastated, and he didn't know what he could do to make things right again.

Dean was ignoring the conversation around him, his whole focus was his little brother and the fact that he still hadn't woke up. He couldn't get the image of Sammy floating face down in their pond out of his head. Taking one of Sammy's little hands in his, he held on willing Sammy to get better, willing that whatever strength he could, would be given to his brother. The elevator doors opened and they all rushed down a hallway and into a room where they took his brother from him. About to protest, he suddenly felt a large familiar hand on his shoulder.

"Dean, they need to work, we can wait in the hall." John said as he led both Dean and Mary into the hallway, the whole time wanting to stay in the room and watch over his badly injured son.

The next forty five minutes were torturous as they waited until they could see the youngest member of their family again. Finally, Dr. Lucas led the way out the door, guiding the gurney that carried their precious member. Looking anxiously at the doctor, they waited silently to see if there was any news. Seeing the doctor motion for them to follow, they all made their way to the pediatric ICU and watched as the doctor and nurses got their Sammy set up in a bed with IV's and a heart monitor attached as well.

"I have the neurologist double checking the scans, but it looks like Sam does have a fractured skull, there are signs of cerebral bruising as well as swelling. John, Mary, I'm sorry to say that your little boy has a rough road ahead of him, before I explain anymore, I want to wait for confirmation of the MRI results." He said gently, praying that his interpretation of the films were wrong.

John and Mary looked at the doctor, both knowing that they hadn't been given all the information yet, but they wanted a moment to process what they had been told first before they started asking more questions. They just wanted a few moments to make sure that their son was still with them, even if they had to delude themselves just for a little while. Before they had a chance to sit next to their son, two people in scrubs rushed in the room and everything changed.

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Mary sat next to Sammy's bed and prayed again that he would prove the doctors wrong. It had been two weeks since they had rushed him into the ER hoping that they had made it in time, two weeks since they had been notified that between the skull fracture, bruising and swelling of his brain, and the length of time that was suspected that he had been without oxygen, the consensus was that brain damage was definite it was just a matter of extent they would determine when he woke; _if_ he woke up from his coma. Two weeks of bedside vigils, all the while wanting to strangle the doctors who would come in for consult after consult with the same look of dread on their faces as they would later explain that their Sammy would never be the same boy again. Then the most devastating news; after everything else, Sammy had developed pneumonia and had to be put on a ventilator to help his lungs work more efficiently.

Dr. Lucas had come to check on them everyday with the same caring compassion that he had shown the first day they met. However even he was starting to get pressure from his superiors that they would need to think of a long term care facility. He had been in the room when one of the doctor's from a sister hospital came for a consultation and dared to suggest that with both John and Dean in the room, it had taken six other doctors to help pry both John and Dean off the man; and they were still going after him when she had shown up and stopped them. Thinking about the last couple of weeks made her more tense than anything else that they had been through in the last several years, and now they were facing the next several weeks at least of uncertainty. Sighing, she looked back over to her little boy and leaned down close to his ear and started singing, hoping that that would help show him the way home.

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John sat in the Impala waiting for Dean to come out of the school. While other parents were planning the families weekend activities while waiting for their children, he was hoping that he and Dean could get back before the next test results were in that would determine if there was any improvement in Sammy. He knew that his family wasn't alone, Jack and Penny had been up at the hospital with the girls as much as possible, and Izzy had promised that as soon as she got over the flu she would be on her way as well.

Thinking back over the last couple of weeks had been hard for the whole family, but he couldn't let go the overwhelming sense of guilt that weighed on him. 'If only I had doubled back sooner, maybe I could have stopped it.' He thought, thinking about what the investigators had found out. _Footprints were found on the creek bank that matched the size of Sam and an unknown person…blood splatter was found at the scene… no prints were found on the weapon… it is believed that the intent was to kill._

Hitting his hand on the steering wheel, John wanted to find the person responsible and try new ways of punishing them for what they dared to do to his family. Unfortunately, there were no clues as to who would have done it, or even why. Well, that's what the police thought – how was he supposed to explain to the police that there were people who wanted his son dead because he was descended from angels? Yeah, that would have him fitted for a nice white jacket in no time.

Thinking about how his youngest had already suffered in his life and how he must be suffering now if his appearance was anything to go by made John want to cry. His little boy now looked worse than when he first came to them. The dark shadows under his eyes were more pronounced, with his pale skin making him practically blend in with the hospital sheets, but what really worried them was how much weight he had lost in such a little amount of time. It hadn't even been a full week before the doctors realized that a feeding tube was going to be necessary because he just didn't have any excess to lose. Shaking his head, John tried to get the picture of little Sammy hooked up to so many machines to try and keep him alive, out of his head, but they were imprinted deeply into his brain until that was all he saw when he closed his eyes.

The door to the Impala opened and Dean slowly got in then looked over "Any news yet Dad?" he asked, hoping that today would be the day that Sammy surprised everyone.

"No son, nothing yet. How about we stop off and grab some food, your mom probably hasn't eaten all day."

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Dr. Lucas knew that the Winchester's were in Sam's room, they had been there non stop since Sam had been admitted. The only change would be when Dean was in school, but even then there was at least one person with the little boy; he was never left alone. He had come out of a meeting asking about the status of young Samuel Winchester, and he honestly didn't know what to say. He had been drifting back and forth from a level four coma to a level two for a couple of days before he settled back into the deep coma again. Every indication showed that although the swelling and pressure had decreased, so had his brain activity. Now, he was being told that he needed to use the trust that he had built with the family to push them into a decision that wasn't popular.

He had just walked into the room when he was stopped suddenly by what he was seeing. Mary and John were on one side of the bed pushing the call button, while Dean was on the other side holding his little brother's hand with tears streaming down his face. Alarmed, he rushed to the bed only to stop in mid stride unable to comprehend what he was seeing.

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Dean knew what the doctors thought about Sammy, but he and his parents knew they were wrong; he was just tired, it takes a lot of work getting the crap kicked out of you over and over again. They knew that when he was ready, Sammy would wake up and be ready for the world again; well, as much as he had been before anyway.

Sitting next to the bed, he told his little brother about his day at school and how the Coach understood him not playing football, but wanted him to tryout for the basketball team. So intent on talking about nothing, he almost missed it, and even then he wasn't sure if he was dreaming or not. Finally wanting to make sure, he called his parents over and they too watched as their little Sammy's fingers twitched, then moved slightly against the white sheets. It wasn't until they looked at his pale face that they knew what was happening. As they watched, Sammy slowly blinked open his eyes and looked around until his gaze stopped first at his parents, then searched out his big brother where they stayed watching Dean's every move.

Excited, John and Mary were pushing the nurse's button when they heard Dr. Lucas walk in, and was amazed at the speed the man moved to see what was going on. The expression on his face however was one none of them would ever forget, it was full of amazement and awe and then held a wide smile that echoed all of their sentiment; _Sammy was awake!_

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_AN: Let me know what you think... c'mon, you know you want to._


	7. Chapter 7

Caleb was beyond pissed, and if he could think of the word for it, then he'd double it and that might get close to how he was feeling at the moment. It was bad enough that he had been on a wild goose chase tracking a Wendigo that turned out to be just a bunch of kids wanting to make trouble for everyone, but then after getting back to the real world he hears on the news about a young boy being attacked on his farm just outside of Lawrence Kansas. As soon as he heard that on the news at the diner he had jumped up from the counter and ran out the door, forgetting to pay his bill in the process. He had never believed in coincidences, and this was just too big to brush off. Now he was speeding down the road, knowing it was going to take another six hours minimum to get there and find out what the hell happened. Sam should have been safe, no one and nothing should have been able to get to him without Jim and everyone else in their group knowing about it.

"Don't worry Sam, when I find out who did this to you I'll make them pay." He said, determined to fulfill the promise.

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Dr. Lucas was amazed at how still Sam was; most people would have already started fighting the ventilator. Then the horror of his thought struck him, and he moved to get into a better position to evaluate the boy. "I need everyone to wait in the hall while I do a few tests…"

"Sorry doc, that is not going to happen. We've waited this long for Sammy to wake up, we're not going anywhere." John told the doctor, bringing himself up to full height to make sure his point was made.

Nodding, he leaned over Sam's bed and took his penlight to look at his pupils, after asking Sam a few questions which he seemed a little sluggish to answer, Dr. Lucas sighed. "I have to see if he's able to trip the ventilator, I want you to know that I'm not hurting him, but he might be uncomfortable for a moment." He told the Winchester's then he made sure that Sam knew what he was going to do. After seeing that there was no response, he quickly re-enabled the ventilator and watched as the whole family seemed to relax a bit. Seeing this, he couldn't help but smile. 'They sure are tight-nit.'

"Ok, here's what we know. Sam is awake and a little confused, he's not able to breathe on his own yet, but we don't know the exact cause." He said tentatively while watching Sam, not wanting to alarm the boy about his injury.

John was imaging all the options of why Sammy wasn't breathing on his own, and he didn't like any of them. Watching the young doctor talk to his boy about why he was there and that they would have to take him for more tests made him glad that they got lucky this time as far as doctors went. Thinking about Derrick's doctor still made him angry and he had to force the feeling away so he could concentrate on the problem at hand. Just because Sammy woke up doesn't mean that there weren't any other complications.

Finally able to move back to the bed, John and Mary both watched as their little boy started to drift off to sleep. Worried, they were about to ask Dr. Lucas what was going on when the younger man smiled and gently said "He's sleeping, his body needs time to heal. I'll schedule the tests while he's asleep so he won't be so stressed." As he walked out the door he turned back to watch the family gather back around the small boy thinking that everything would be alright now, not knowing that their trouble had just begun.

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It took less than ten minutes for the word to spread that the boy Samuel Winchester, Dr. Lucas' hard case patient, had woken up. It took less than fifteen minutes afterwards that doctors were making excuses to go up to the pediatric ward to take a peek at the 'little miracle'. While the atmosphere on the floor was charged with excitement, the atmosphere in Sam's room was started to get charged with apprehension.

Mary didn't like what was going on one bit. One minute everyone was telling them that they needed to think about sending Sammy away where he could 'get the care he will need', and then next the very same people were cheering that her son was awake as if they didn't have a doubt the whole time. Looking at John, she knew he was having the same doubts, and if Sammy hadn't just woke up, she was sure her husband would have already smuggled him out of the building by now.

Dean watched as his parents sat there watching as a parade of hospital personnel came in and out of his little brother's room as if they had been sending their best wishes this whole time instead of trying to make Sammy out to be some sort of vegetable. Disgusted, he turned away from the latest group of _well wishers_ and looked out the window only to pause at what he saw. "Dad, come here a second." He called out, not believing what he was seeing.

John walked past the latest group of hypocrites and looked out the window until he saw what had caught his son's attention. When he saw the man who had just stepped out of a beat up truck, he couldn't believe what he was seeing. "Mary, I'll be back. Dean stay here and watch out for your Mom and Sammy." He said quickly as he rushed out of the room.

Dr. Lucas had just bumped into John as he was leaving the room, and although it was unusual to see the man leave the room, he didn't think too much about it at first; then he walked into the room. "WHAT THE HELL? Ok… everyone OUT! For God's sake, the boy is still sick with pneumonia and you all are dragging more germs in here for him to fight. OUT!" he was more than a little upset, he was livid. These people may be his friends and colleagues, but they should have the decency not to treat his patient like a circus freak. As the last nurse walked out, Damon rushed to Sam to make sure he hadn't been disturbed by all the commotion.

"I take it you didn't have any idea about what was going on?" Mary asked as she watched closely to every move that Dr. Lucas made near her son, looking across the room she noticed Dean was doing the same thing.

"No, I wouldn't jeopardize Sam that way." He said as he looked over his shoulder towards her. When she looked like she was going to ask a question, he elaborated. "Hospitals are the worst place to be if you aren't already ill. Just now I saw people from Oncology, ICU, Radiology, and the Lab, all places where they're in contact with who knows what type of contaminants and for them to walk in here like they did with Sam in his compromised state is unbelievable. I'll make sure it doesn't happen again. Once Betty gets here we'll take him for his MRI then bring him right back." He told her as he watched Dean watch him. Nodding, he cleared his throat before he pressed the call button to call for Betty so they could get started, and hopefully get the murderous look off the older brother.

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John couldn't believe the audacity of the man to show up after no contact for the last three weeks, now he just shows up. By the time he had reached the middle of the lobby and met up with Caleb he was seeing red, but the time he was finished so were the people standing in the lobby as they watched the action unfold and Caleb's blood flow. "Leave! It didn't take long for you to show how much you really care about Sammy, so you can just go back where you came from and leave us alone." John told the man who was picking himself off the floor.

"Damn it Winchester! I was in the middle of nowhere, and only found out about what happened yesterday." Caleb growled as he started to wipe the blood from his mouth and eyes. 'Damn he has a temper.' He thought, wondering why the man wasn't a hunter the way he was able to get the drop on him.

Looking at Caleb he watched for any deception and after a minute of scrutiny decided that there was none. "Sorry Caleb, it's been a rough couple of weeks, and now things are getting more bizarre." John said as he held out a handkerchief to the hunter.

"Yeah, I can imagine. So, any idea what happened?" he asked, hoping that there was something that he could go on, some innocuous lead that would help him find who was responsible so he could make them feel real pain.

John shook his head and motioned for him to follow. "Sammy woke up a little while ago, but they still don't know the extent of the damage, they were about to take him for another MRI, but I'm warning you it's a madhouse in his room right now." He shook his head solemnly when Caleb looked questioningly at him, and he spent the time in the elevator explaining what had happened from the time that the hunters had left to the time that his son's room was filled with strangers staring at him like some sort of dessert.

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Dr. Morris couldn't believe his luck, he wasn't supposed to be in today, but an emergency with one of his experimental protocol patients had him rescheduling his plans and playing nursemaid to an ungrateful man who insisted that he stay close by until the lab results were in and a new treatment could be devised. He had been furious by the demand at first, but then he heard that the little boy in PICU had come out of his coma shocking everyone. Knowing that others were calling the boy a 'little miracle', he couldn't wait to get hold of him and see what brought him out of his condition which every specialist knew the damage was too great for the boy to survive. Yes, he couldn't wait to run his own tests to see how this happened and find a way to help others. Well, that's what he would tell the parents, but it would really help him get noticed in the research field, especially if he wanted he other projects to be taken seriously.

Stepping off the elevator of the pediatrics wing, he realized that up until now he hadn't paid attention to the name of the patient. Taking a moment to talk to one of the nurses, he found out what he was looking for; Winchester, Samuel. _Now why did that name sound familiar?_ Then he saw two men stepping off the elevator and it suddenly hit him where he had heard it. 'Well, this day is just getting more and more interesting.' He thought gleefully, knowing how much he was looking forward to getting the little Winchester in his lab to see what made him tick.


	8. Chapter 8

AN: Ok.. after rereading the last chapter, I have to say I was pretty upset with myself (I normally write better than that, right?) So, I tried to make this one better... hopefully I'm not just deluding myself. Let me know though, otherwise I'll either thing it was good or I'll think it stunk (trust me, it depends on my mood on how I take things). Thanks everyone for sticking with me... it means alot! Sammygirl: I got you're PM, and I hope you get up and running soon, but totally understand the problem. ;) Red Dragen: I haven't heard from you in awhile, so not sure if you're still with us. Let me know if you are.

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John and Caleb walked into Sammy's room to find it occupied by only Mary and Dean. Before they could question what had happened, Mary looked at them and explained quietly, "Dr. Lucas and Nurse Betty took Sammy for his MRI, they should be back pretty soon."

Dean started to laugh then looked at his dad "You missed the excitement though; Dr. Lucas chased everyone out like they were stray cats."

Caleb looked at Dean and smiled knowing that it probably had been awhile since the kid was able to enjoy something like that. "From what I understand kid, they all deserved it. So, what do you say I treat you and your Mom to something to eat, we can go to the cafeteria and eat, or find a diner close and take a few minutes."

John rolled his eyes at the hunter's antics "Moving in on my family already?" he asked, sure he already knew the answer.

"Well, yeah, you didn't think I was hanging around for your ugly mug did you?" Caleb bantered back knowing that his friend was needing a little stress relief.

Mary smiled but quickly hid it when her husband looked at her. "Actually, Penny will bring us some supper here in a little while. You can go if you'd like… I'm sure you're a big enough boy to be able to find the cafeteria by yourself."

Putting his hand over his heart, Caleb was the model of mock hurt. Finally, he flopped into a vacant chair and propped his feet on a small desk and looked conspiratorially at Dean. "Nah, I'm good!" he said with a wicked grin.

Any other conversation was cut short by Dr. Lucas entering the room maneuvering Sammy's bed back into position. After hooking the ventilator back to up, he quickly dismissed the techs and nodded to Nurse Betty who quickly shut the door. "We have a problem, and it's not one I can easily fix." He told the Winchester's quietly while watching the observation window for anyone lurking outside.

Caleb sat up when he heard what the doctor said and seeing how the man was acting, he was glad he managed to smuggle in a weapon. Mary looked nervously at Sammy, sure that they had found something wrong, but her little boy still looked to be sleeping so she wasn't sure what else could have happened. John had tensed and knew that he wasn't going to like what he heard, and couldn't help but wonder if he misjudged this doctor as well. Dean however was taking a different stance, he didn't care what was wrong, he was going to make sure that it was taken care of, no matter what.

"Dr. Morris has heard about Sam and is requesting a copy of his records so he can evaluate him for a study that he is starting. Mr. Winchester, I have no doubt that he wants to study Sam, not have him participate in a legitimate medical study. Unfortunately, he's been able to steer people away from his more… dubious activities for years. There's been rumors, but anytime someone investigates him, then there's suddenly information that supports his claim about what he's doing." He paused to look at Betty and noticed that she was looking as nervous as he felt. Looking at the people in front of him, he saw a mixture of anger, disbelief, horror, and fear. "I don't have enough clout with the administration to keep him away, he's already speaking to the Chief of Staff about the 'study' he is wanting to conduct and from what I have heard he's already thrown Sam's name in the mix."

"Wait a minute! How in the world could this be happening? Sammy woke up less than three hours ago, and you had him for his MRI for less than an hour. How can this person get so much information and move so quickly?" Caleb asked, seeing that John was turning an interesting shade of red.

Dr. Lucas shook his head, "The hospital grape vine can be a blessing or a curse, and right now I'm thinking it's the latter. Mr. Winchester, I know that you've had some dealings with Dr. Morris, and they weren't pleasant. I also have a feeling that if he gets his hands on Sam, it will be the same outcome, unfortunately until he wakes and is off the vent, we're limited to what we can do."

So intent on the conversation they failed to see the pair of hazel eyes watching them closely. It wasn't until the ventilator's alarm sounded that all attention turned to the boy on the bed. As everyone clamored to the bed, Sam watched them carefully, warily; not knowing what else to do, he waited.

Puzzled, Dr. Lucas turned from the readings on the ventilator to Sam and looked at the boy in amazement. "Sam, I'm going to check your breathing, ok?" At Sam's tiny nod, Dr. Lucas checked to see if the boy was really able to breathe on his own or if the sensor equipment was faulty. After repeating his earlier test, he gently removed the tube from Sam's throat and sighed. "Sam, you are without a doubt one incredible little boy."

As the doctor and nurse checked Sam for the extent of damage, the others looked at each other wondering what had just happened and if they should worry.

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Dr. Matthew Morris had just finished an enlightening meeting with his Chief of Staff and he couldn't have been happier with the outcome, after all, he and Dr. Julian Cheney had been friends for many years and it wasn't hard to steer his friend to his way of thinking. All he needed was a chance to study further the boy's medical records and maybe a session once in awhile to try and figure out how this boy was able to survive a skull fracture, cranial bleeds, swelling and bruising, not to mention the pneumonia which was proving to be annoying and the early stages of an infection that had suddenly disappeared soon after it appeared on one of the MRI's. Yes, once he laid it out to his esteemed colleague, he had been given the permission he needed to investigate further; as long as the parents agreed.

Having just left the elevator he replayed what he was going to say to the Winchester's. He'd play on their grief of losing one son, and make them see that he could help keep them from losing another. Yes, by morning he'd have their permission to run whatever tests that he deemed necessary, and he relished in the fantasy he had created. He could see himself making new discoveries just from this one child, and he would have the fame and prestige that he had always dreamed of. Smiling, he quickened his pace to the PICU and walking into the Winchester boy's room without preamble, only to stop in mid-step at what he saw. The room was vacant. No parents, no friends, but more disturbing – no patient.

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Damon knew he had to be careful, that if anyone followed him then all of their plans would be ruined. He still couldn't believe that he helped smuggle a seriously ill child out of the hospital, but then again, he couldn't believe that Morris was as despicable as he suspected. Thanking whatever deity was listening that they had been able to get Sam out of his room unnoticed and into the service elevator to go to the basement, he was sure that he had used up any 'divine intervention' requests for quite awhile. Now all he had to do was make sure that he got to Sam without leading anyone to him – _sure, not a problem. _

As he drove the dark back roads, he still couldn't believe what he had happened after he saw his patient off. _He had just returned to the PICU when he saw a group of security personnel as well as several doctors outside Sam's room. "Dr. Lucas, a minute of your time please." Came the request from his boss Dr. Cheney. "Of course, if you'll just give me a moment to check on my patient, then…"_

_He was cut off by Dr. Morris' enraged tirade. "Your patient is not there… what, you didn't know? I find that very hard to believe, since you are the bleeding heart of this hospital."_

"_What?!?" he exclaimed and pushed past people to see the room for himself. He knew he would have to put on the performance of a lifetime, but he also had a feeling that this was what had to be done to save his patient's life. He knew that he couldn't tell anyone what he had been feeling since Sam had been admitted, he'd be forced into a psych evaluation before he would know what hit him… but he knew what he felt; someone, or something was guiding him during his treatment of Sam. He couldn't explain it, except maybe as a whisper on his soul – he just knew when he was supposed to do something, and tonight it told him to take the child and run._

_Turning to those who had gathered in the room, he forced a look of bewilderment and shock on his face. "What happened? He was just here! I finally convinced his family to go to the diner across the street for a bite to eat, and now we lose their son?!?" he exclaimed, hoping that the nervousness that he felt would be construed as anger._

_An officer who had arrived and been filled in quickly walked further into the room. "Dr. Lucas, are you sure that the parents were at the diner? Is it possible that they could have taken the boy?"_

_Putting on just the right amount of indignation, he looked at the officer then took the phone and called the diner, giving the receiver to the officer. After asking the waitress a few questions and requesting that the Winchester's get back to the hospital ASAP, he hung up the phone and waited._

_Five and a half minutes later there was the sound of running echoing through the halls before the door flung open. It took only a moment before the questions started, and Damon had to admit he admired Sam and Dean's parent's ability to stand there while their young son was elsewhere. It still took another half an hour and many promises of physical retribution later that the officer had what he needed and took off to call it in. As soon as the officer was gone, the Winchester's agreed to leave on the condition that they got regular reports of what was going on._

Shaking his head, he brought his attention back to the road ahead until he found the small path that led into the woods, then he hid his car, grabbed his bag, and followed the directions give to him until he reached a small house completely hidden. Knocking on the back door, he wasn't surprised that he was grabbed and flung into the back door until he almost fell onto his butt. Looking up he saw the man he met as Caleb looking down at him, before he was helped up and quickly steered to the living room by the fireplace.

Sam laid on the couch wrapped in blankets and propped up on pillows watching the flames in the fireplace but not trying to speak at all. Dean was close to his little brother while Mary was fixing the little boy a sports drink to help keep him hydrated. John was close to the window, watching everything outside as if everything were a hidden enemy.

An IV port was still in Sam's hand and peeked out of the blankets reminding Damon why he was there.

"Sam, I'm going to listen to your chest, is that alright?" Damon asked, disturbed by the silence he received. After listening to the boy's lungs, he knew that the pneumonia didn't want to let go, and immediately injected a dose of an antibiotic into the port praying that it would help soon.As he looked around the room, he quickly became aware of the lack of … anything in the room. This family usually gave off strong vibes, but now they lacked that and he wondered about it. Deciding to recheck all of Sam's vitals, he took his time to drag out his visit hoping that he could learn more about what was going on.

"The pneumonia isn't letting go, but I'm hoping the antibiotic I gave him will help." He said as he looked around to the practically blank expressions around him. Upset, he finally let his anger about the whole situation show "Ok, what the hell is going on?" he practically yelled, only to be surprised when Sam moaned and held his head which got everyone upset which seemed to make Sam more miserable. Stepping back, he couldn't help but wonder what was really going on.

Caleb walked up to him and sighed, "Sam's special. As in… REAL special. The more agitated you are, the more he hurts, so how about you calm down a bit." Leaving the doctor to wonder what he got himself into.


	9. Chapter 9

Dean was worried, he couldn't help it. The more he watched his little brother, the worse the intense feeling in his gut got. He couldn't help but think that every sound outside was someone coming to take Sammy away, while every sound he heard inside was a constant reminder of how sick his little brother really was. Sitting on the couch next to Sammy, he watched as the small chest in front of him labored in its job of rising. Tucking the blankets tighter around the small body, he tried hard to ignore the sound of the labored breathing and tried to concentrate on the conversation around him; hoping that something that someone said could somehow help his Sammy get better and stay away from that quack Morris.

Sam knew he was still sick, but he really wanted to tell Dean that he was alright. His chest hurt every time he breathed, and everyone was worried about him making him feel worse. He knew that he was home, but it felt wrong. His mommy and daddy were upset and his big brother was worried. He looked over at Caleb and knew that he wished that things were different, but he didn't understand why his friend felt that way. Of course right now he couldn't understand anything, he felt so sleepy all the time but he couldn't sleep because of how much he hurt. Now he watched Dr. Lucas listen to his chest and frown more than he'd ever seen the doctor do before. Watching the doctor put the needle into the port in his hand, Sammy started to giggle. At the curious looks of his family and friends he turned his head to Dr. Lucas and said in between labored breaths, "Damon…means…demon, but… you're not…"

Dr. Lucas paused a moment as Sam's words penetrated his brain, and then he smiled as he watched the boy drift off into a drug induced sleep. Looking up he saw the occupants in the room watching him, gauging his reaction. "Don't worry, I already knew that, what I don't know is how Sam knew what my name is; I try not to go around advertising the fact."

Laughing, Caleb walked over to the window and took John's position before saying "Told you he's special."

Taking a cup of coffee from Mary, John sat down and looked at the young doctor. "Look, you have already risked everything for us, so we don't expect anything else from you, including understanding when we tell you that Sammy is very special and we'll do _anything_ to protect him. Just leave us the medicine he's going to need and go back to you're life, because the longer you stay here the more likely you're going to see and hear things that you won't want to know about. All that we ask is that you keep Sammy's whereabouts quiet."

Looking at John then at the others in the room, Damon understood something; he could either step up or step out, and he didn't like the second option at all. "Not happening, I helped sneak him out of the hospital, I arranged the alibi and story, so I'm already in this pretty deep and there is no way I'm just going to throw Sam to the wolves. So, how about filling me in on what's really going on. I'm a big boy… I can handle it." He said, trying to add a little levity to the tense atmosphere in the room.

Shrugging his shoulder, Dean watched the man in front of him closely. He could tell that the doctor wanted to help, and was probably open minded enough to listen without having the lot of the committed, but the real question was – what would he do with the information if they did share. Looking over to Caleb he saw the hunter give Dr. Lucas a cursory glance before resuming his stance as watchman. Mary had been waiting next to Dean to see if Sammy was in any more distress than he was earlier, but she made sure to look up and he saw her answer in her eyes. Nodding, he winked at Dean then looked the doctor straight in the eyes and told him everything.

He felt like he'd been punched in the gut, that was the only way he could describe it. One minute he's sitting in his totally oblivious world and the next he's being told that his worst nightmares are real and the little boy he's supposed to help is… well, hell… he didn't know how to describe Sam. Standing, he walked over to the boy and watched him sleep noticing that the tension in the room had just doubled in the amount of time it took him to cross the room. Checking the boy's breath sounds gave him time to process what he had been told while at the same time helped him determine if the medicine he'd given the boy earlier was starting to work. Cursing lightly under his breath, Damon got up and looked around him. "Ok, we have to get this little guy better fast, and if he stays here it's going to be a fight. We can't take him back to the hospital, and we can't take him to one of Kansas City's hospitals because Morris will eventually think to look there. Not to mention I hate the idea of moving him makes me cringe. So, we need to get his bronchial tubes to open more and get the inflammation and infection under control. To do that I need to get some different meds and some equipment, I'll be back in a couple of hours, try to keep him comfortable."

They watched as the doctor walked quickly out the door and into the night wondering if they should take the man at face value, or take a giant risk and grab Sammy and run. Caleb weighed the possibilities then looked at Dean. "Hey kid, what did you get from the doc?" Dean was more than a little puzzled, Sammy was the psychic not him. Looking confused he shook his head until the hunter smiled slightly and explained. "Sometimes when a Guardian and their charge are extremely close they can tap into what the other is feeling. So, I guess I should have asked what Sam got from the doc."

Dean thought about it for a moment before he reached out and brushed Sammy's hair out of his eyes. Finally he looked back up and laughed "I know that Sammy thought it was really funny that the doctor was named demon without being one, other than that he's more confused about what's going on… but nothing bad about Dr. Lucas." Realizing what he'd done, Dean looked shocked then muttered a "Whoa!" before looking at his parents reaction.

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Damon hated cellular phones, they cost too much and made him feel as if he had a leash on at all times, that's why he always kept his in the car and checked for calls and messages like he did his answering machine at home. Now though he was thankful he had the damn thing. Driving down the road watching to make sure there wasn't anyone following or acting suspicious, he dialed the familiar number and waited for the sleepy voice to answer. "He'o?" the voice whispered over the line giving Damon such a feeling of relief that he almost swerved off the road.

"Betty, it's me. I need a favor and I'm hoping that you won't ask questions." He said holding his breath to hear her response. There was a pause then what sounded like her clearing her throat before her voice came through the phone loud and clear.

"Damon, what the hell have you gotten yourself into now?" she scolded, already knowing that if he was calling her this late, after he already knew that she had already worked enough overtime this week to make an extra car payment, then it had to be huge. "Nevermind, just get your scrawny ass over here… and you better bring coffee." Then she was gone in the midst of a dial tone leaving him to smirk and shake his head as he pulled into a twenty four hour convenience store. Ten minutes later he was knocking on her back door praying that she still had what he needed for the Winchester boy.

It only took a few moments for the door to open and a very sleepy and still half alert Betty to open the door and let him in grabbing one of the coffees as he passed. "So, you going to tell me why you woke me from my beauty sleep when you know an old woman like me needs as much as she can get?" she asked as she looked him up and down checking for any external injuries which would make him come to her instead of the ER.

"Will you stop looking at me like I got into a bar room brawl, it's nothing like that. Betty, I need to know if you still have the portable nebulizer that you used on your grandson, and if possible the meds that came with it." He knew it was a sore subject with the woman in front of him, but he couldn't risk going back to the hospital to get it. Watching his friend mull things over in her head, he wasn't too surprised when she spoke again.

"How bad is Sam?" she asked as she took a large drink of her coffee and made her way down the narrow hallway.

Shaking his head, he still couldn't believe how astute she could be. Maybe it was just because he was still considered a rookie and she had seen a lot of stupid young doctors get in over their heads, or maybe it's what she had always told him – he couldn't get away with anything because he reminded her of her own son. Following close behind, he told her the bare necessities of what was going on with Sam. Afterwards she turned to him and nodded. "Damon, you're not stupid so don't treat me like I am. Now, I know that you helped smuggle that boy out of the hospital, and I know why. My question is… is he in a place that he will get better, or do I need to call over to the funeral home and reserve a box."

Damn she was blunt tonight. 'Mental note: Don't call Betty when she's asleep.' he thought to himself as he watched her down the rest of the coffee, then responded. "I won't lie to you, he's in trouble, but if we can get his lungs opened up then he has a chance. You know that I wouldn't drag you in this…"

Betty held up her hand and shook her head. "I don't care about being dragged into something, after all what's the worse they'd do to me? Fire me… _please_ let them try it, I know where all the skeleton's are buried and I wouldn't mind doing a little spring cleaning as I was being booted out. Nope, as long as you remember why you're doing what you're doing, then I'm ok with it." She told him while watching his reaction closely.

Taking the nebulizer and the box of medicine from Betty, he kissed her on the cheek and turned back to the door. As he was rushing out he heard her call out to him. "Don't get caught and I won't have to lie!"

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Dr. Morris was furious. The police investigation hadn't turned up anything, and anytime he inquired the status he was given some bureaucratic crap about not being able to get information since Samuel Winchester wasn't one of his patients. "Damn it!" he exclaimed in the elevator going back to the pediatric floor "That kid is mine damn it! MINE!"

As he stepped out of the elevator, he noticed a group on nurses talking amongst themselves. Determined to find out what was really going on in this hellhole of a hospital, he walked up to them gently asked. "Good Evening Ladies, is everything ok here? Has that poor little boy been found yet?"

Three of the four nurses looked at him suspiciously, but the other one freely gave what she knew. "No sir, but everyone is still looking, and the police are still going over the video footage to see if they can tell how he was taken out of the hospital." Morris smiled at the young woman, he found an ally; she just didn't know it yet. "Oh… well hopefully they'll find him soon, he's still very ill." He said sympathetically then walked away, knowing that he just found someone who would be willing to fill him in on the details whenever he asked.

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Bobby Singer and Pastor Jim Murphy looked like they had been dragged through hell and back, and if you were the right person and asked the right question, you would have gotten the answer "Not Hell, but close – Devil's Gate in Eastern Europe." To say it was a grueling trip would have been an understatement, but it was nothing compared to what they were feeling when they were walking through one of O'Hare's sports bars when a snippet of the national news broke through the otherwise constant evaluation and predications of the weekend's upcoming games.

… _to make matters worse for the Winchester family, their critically ill son was taken from the hospital with no clues to point to the identity of either the attacker, or the abductor. The Lawrence Police Department has asked that if anyone has any information to please call them immediately. Back to you Joan…_

Whatever the two men were planning on drinking seemed more than a little irrelevant at the moment and they rushed to the nearest payphones. Jim being the first to reach a phone, immediately called the cottage to see if he could reach anyone, knowing that the likelihood of anyone being…

"Hello" came the deep voice over the line which stopped Jim in his thoughts for a moments before he became functioning again.

"John, my God, how are you and Mary holding up? Bobby and I were in Europe and just found out what happened. Dean… how's Dean taking this…."

"Jim, calm down, Sammy's here with us. It's a long story that quite frankly I'm too tired to explain over the phone. When you come, don't let anyone know and come the back way. Here's Caleb." There was a long pause that made Jim and Bobby wonder if they had just imagined the conversation. Finally Caleb's voice was on the phone and he didn't sound too happy. "Get your asses here; we need all the help we can get."

Looking at each other, they knew that whatever was going on they needed to be there and fast.

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Jack and Penny couldn't sleep, after what had happened the previous evening, they knew that they wouldn't be able to for awhile. Watching their girls sleep was the only thing they could think to do that wouldn't consist of pacing across the floor or picking up and putting down the phone. Jessica and Mariah's screams of wanting to stay with Sammy still echoed in their ears and only confirmed what they already knew. The Winchester's and Moore's were intertwined, no beginning, no end.

Helping to take Sam out of the hospital and then smuggling him back to his home until the rest of the family could get there had been nerve wracking, but after the situation had been explained, they knew it was necessary. They both knew that John and Mary would have done the same thing for them if the need arose.

Jessica's stubborn streak was still present even in sleep, the firm set of her chin showed that she was still thinking of 'her Sammy' and what he must be going through. Since neither girl knew what was really going on, they only knew what one of the news stations reported – that Sam had been taken from the hospital and everyone was looking for him. After Jessica had heard that, she looked at Mariah and informed her little sister that they were sleeping in one room until they found the person who took Sammy.

They knew it was going to be hard to act normal with the police asking questions, the neighbors asking questions, news people, hospital personnel, and a variety of others who just had to know what they knew so they could find Sam and be the hero's of the day, not knowing that the real threat was lurking in the hospital just waiting for someone to screw the whole plan up. Sighing, Jack got up and started their morning routine, most people might still be asleep, but the sun would start to peak over the horizon soon and that meant it was time for coffee – _a lot of_ coffee.


	10. Chapter 10

AN: Well, here's another installment and to let you know how utterly insane I really am... I started on a new story (no, I am _not_ kidding!) and will be posting it right after this chapter, so that tells you what I've been up to tonight. Hopefully you'll enjoy tonight's update, then we can get started on... wait! I'd give it away - I can't do that! Hope you enjoy anyway!

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As the morning sun was starting to make its way over the horizon, Mary took Caleb's spot on by the window to watch for anyone coming close. Where they were located, if anyone was spotted from the window, then that person or persons were there for a reason, and they would need as much time as possible to move Sammy to a different room. Briefly wondering how their lives could have gone from normal mundane spiced with occasional excitement to the total opposite was still a mystery to her, but she would change a thing in her life. Sammy had brought a healing to her heart that she hadn't even been aware that she was in need of. Glancing to the couch, she noticed that Caleb was trying to coax Sammy into drinking a little juice, but her little boy could barely open his eyes much less take a drink on command. Looking back out the window she sent up a silent prayer that Dr. Lucas would get back with the medicine her son needed.

Dean watched as Caleb tried to get Sammy to drink, but his little brother was too exhausted to do much more than lay on the couch, propped up in front of the fireplace, piled with blankets to keep him warm. Thinking about how much Sammy had started to shake earlier scared him more than anything else he could think of. Dr. Lucas had promised he's be back with what Sammy needed, but now it could be too late to sneak back to the cottage. He couldn't figure out what Dr. Morris wanted with his little brother, but he knew one thing, if something happened to Sammy because they were hiding from that quack, there would be hell to pay; he'd see to it.

Caleb was worried, Sam was getting weaker by the minute and there was no sign of the doctor and with the sun coming up it would be harder to conceal a car in the back portion of the property. Watching closely, he knew that just the job of taking the next breath was a major task for the boy in front of him, and for the briefest moments he thought about taking him back to the hospital; Dr. Morris be damned! Then he realized that the previous history with the Winchester's and Dr. Morris wasn't just a petty disagreement, that the doctor had a blatant disregard for his patients and there was no way he'd allow Sam to go through that. Instead, he continued to dribble a little bit of juice down the little boy's throat and prayed that they hadn't placed their trust in someone who couldn't deliver.

John was getting ready to go hunt Dr. Lucas down when there was a knock at the back door. A few moments later, John was leading the young doctor into the room that had been made into a temporary bedroom for Sammy. Damon knew he was later than what he had initially said, but he wanted to make sure he wasn't being followed. Looking around the room he shook his head, "We need to put out the fire in the fireplace, and move Sam to another part of the room. The medicine will do ok with the way things are, but the oxygen tank I brought doesn't take to open flames well." He said as he hooked up the nebulizer and started Sam on his first breathing treatment since he'd been out of the hospital. "Sam, can you hear me?" he asked, and when he only got a slight nod for an answer he knew that they needed to hurry. "Sam, the mask I'm putting over your face is going to give you some medicine, it's going to help you breathe better. I'm also going to hook up an IV and put more medicine in it, ok?" he asked, not waiting for an answer, just immediately hooked up the saline as well as a small bag of antibiotic to the port still in Sam's small hand. He didn't have to look for a place to hang the bags, Caleb had silently volunteered for that duty, making sure that he didn't move the IV in anyway that would disturb the little boy.

"How long until that's done?" Mary asked Damon, wondering not only how long until Sammy could take the mask off, but how long it would take until they knew if it was working.

Damon looked at Mary and tried to give her an encouraging smile. "The treatment will last about twenty minutes, and he should feel a difference in less time than that. We'll repeat the treatment every couple of hours until his breathing lightens then we can start shortening the treatments. In between times we can let him have oxygen if his breathing is still labored, but I'm hoping that the steroids in the treatments will work."

John didn't like that word at all; he looked at the doctor and demanded "Steroids? You're giving my boy steroids? Couldn't that hurt him more than the damned pneumonia?"

Damon felt like an idiot, he should have consulted them about what he had planned to do, but after seeing Sam in the state that he was in he couldn't take the time to explain. "The steroids are going to reduce the swelling in Sam's bronchial passages, and help him to breathe better. He shouldn't be on them long enough to do any damage to other organs, and we'll make sure that there isn't any damage after we get rid of the pneumonia." Looking between Mary and John he was hoping for an answer of any kind, but was confused when the response he heard was from Mary.

"DAMN IT! JOHN!"

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Mary had turned to listen to the doctor for just a few moments, but when she turned back around her heart jumped in her throat. Calling for her husband, she motioned for him to look out the window. Once everyone saw what had her upset, they all immediately set themselves in motion.

Caleb and Dean took Sammy into the guest bedroom, while John moved the couch back in place. Mary watched for another moment then started to light candles and grabbed the blanket from the couch and threw them after Caleb and Dean then rushed to turn the heat under the teapot to high and refill the coffeemaker. Dean had finished getting Sammy settled and rushed into the living room to drag Damon into the same room where Caleb and Sammy were. Dean had just managed to sit at the table with Sammy's orange juice in his hands before the knocking of the door started.

Taking a moment, John looked around and couldn't help but notice how ragged his family looked. 'Well, we won't have to do much convincing that we're the grieving family.' He thought before he opened the door to the Sheriff and one of his deputies.

"Mr. Winchester, I'm sorry to disturb you this early in the morning, but I was hoping to fill you in on our investigations involving your son Samuel. May we come in?" the Sheriff asked, not wanting to rub this family the wrong way.

As John motioned both men inside, he asked quietly "Have you found out anything, anything that might help?"

While the Sheriff was taking a few moments to fill in the Winchester's on what they knew, the Deputy was looking casually around the living room. "Someone have a cold Mrs. Winchester?" the Deputy asked.

Mary looked first at the Deputy then at Dean and nodded before she turned to the now screaming teapot and poured hot water into a couple of mugs then reduced the heat to keep the steam coming as well as a steady hissing sound before making a small production in making the tea and handing one to Dean while she sat down with one herself. "Honey, the coffee will be ready in a minute. Remember, Caleb said he should be back in another hour or so to help with the search." Mary said as they conversed over the sound of the hot water hissing and the coffeepot brewing.

Having filled the family in on what they knew and that they weren't going to give up until they found their son, the Sheriff and the Deputy both went to the door. Before opening it however, the deputy turned back around "You know, my little girl has asthma and I keep smelling the medicine that we give her for her breathing treatments."

Mary at first didn't know how to respond to the deputy's obvious inquiry, then she did the only thing she could think of; she lied. "Dean's cold was settling in his chest so I had made a home remedy earlier. You think it stinks now, John was about to have the house declared a disaster area." She said as she tried to smile, but knew it fell short. Watching both the Sheriff and Deputy mull the reason of the smell in their minds, Mary didn't know what they would do if either men tried to ask her to prove it.

Finally, both the Sheriff and the Deputy nodded in understanding and turned back to the door. As the men walked to their car, the occupants of the house could faintly hear the Sheriff describe how his grandmother's house would smell during flu season, and that he was glad he had married a city girl.

It didn't take long for Sammy to be put back on the couch and covered nice and toasty in the blankets again. The treatment was almost over and everyone waited to see if there was any improvement. Before the medicine was completely gone, Sammy opened his eyes and looked at Mary. "Hi Mommy, I missed you." He said quietly, then promptly feel into an easier sleep.

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AN: I know... it's short, but did you still like it? Oh... and if you think Sammy's out of the woods (no pun intended), then you really don't know me... 


	11. Chapter 11

John sat watching his little boy and noted that even in sleep he looked to carry the weight of the world on his tiny shoulders. He couldn't help but think that there had been something that the doctors had failed to tell them while Sammy was still in the hospital, something that they were concerned about his and Mary's reaction. More than one nurse and surgeon had given them a look that bordered on sympathy… no pity… and he was starting to wonder why. Was there something that they hadn't been told, did something happen to Sammy while he was out of their sight, is that the reason why he was having so much trouble now? Looking across the room, he watched Dr. Damon Lucas drink another cup of coffee and explain where he was able to get the meds and equipment in the middle of the night without raising suspicion.

"Betty didn't have a problem giving the remaining amount of medicine; she's a good woman and an even better friend." Damon said as he looked at his coffee losing himself in his own thoughts.

Mary was about to question further, but noticed John had settled at the table with an unreadable expression on his face. Knowing her husband, she waited to see what was on his mind, it didn't take long before his question made everyone stop what they were doing and look at the doctor. "What haven't they told us about Sammy's condition?"

Damon knew that someone would have to explain what had some of the doctor's and nurses in such an uproar about Sam, but he had really been hoping it wouldn't be him. Taking a large drink of his now warm coffee he looked at John and began. "As you know, Sam had a skull fracture which caused swelling in the brain. He also had some cranial bleeding as well as an infection, that had all but signed his death certificate." He watched as everyone looked at him with questions in their eyes and although he was closer to understanding what had happened, he still wasn't comfortable with voicing his theory, and he prayed he wouldn't have to voice it out loud.

"Why weren't we told about the bleeding or the infection? We knew about the fracture and the surgery to remove the pieces that had imbedded themselves in his brain, we were told about the swelling and knew about the procedure to help alleviate it, hell we were even told about the bruising that they were certain was going to cause brain damage, but now you're sitting there telling me that there was more that we _weren't_ told?" John was furious, and if it wasn't for the fact that their little boy was actually sleeping peacefully, he was sure he would have already given the good doctor the reaming out of a lifetime.

Knowing he deserved the Winchester's anger, Damon only nodded and tried to explain, "The bleeding and infection, although separate in cause, disappeared at the same time; right after one of the MRI's picked it up." When the others looked at him bewildered he continued. "Mary, do you remember when they came back after a couple of hours for another scan saying that the films were ruined?" After she nodded he said "That's when they had first noticed it, and took another scan as a 'precaution'. In less than four hours, the cranial bleeds and signs of infection were gone. John, Mary, that's one of the reasons why Dr. Morris wants Sam so badly, he could be a meal ticket to any researcher if what you told me about Sam gets into the wrong hands."

Caleb cursed and forced himself to calm down as not to disturb the little boy sleeping on the couch. Looking at the young doctor, he was tempted to make the problem disappear, but would wait to see who's side this guy was _really_ on. Moving from his position by the kitchen cabinets, he moved closer to watch over Sam and what he saw made him let another curse this one not as quiet. Little Sam was awake and by the look on his face, he'd heard everything.

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Deputy McKee had left with the Sheriff from the Winchester cottage, and at first didn't think anything about what he had noticed, that was until he was called home because his daughter was ill. Walking through the door, he stopped midway and sudden realization hit him – hard. "Honey, how is she?" he called out, removing his sidearm and locking it in the desk by the door.

A small woman who looked like she had had better mornings walked into the living room and gave a small self depreciating smile before she answered. "Sorry to drag you home, she started responding to the treatment right after I called."

Smiling at his wife, he gave her a quick kiss on the cheek then called over his shoulder as he went to check on their little girl. "Honey, that medicine that she has… is it used for anything else besides asthma?" He had already suspected the answer as soon as he walked in the door and smelled the exact smell that was at the Winchester's.

"Sure, it's common for all sorts of lung ailments. The doctor made sure we were able to give this particular one for her because it _is_ so common and works so well."

Sitting on his daughter's bed, watching her nap he had to ask the next question. "Is there anything else out there that smells like it?"

There was a pause as his wife thought about it for a moment then answered warily, "Uh, I've been told that it smells a little like eucalyptus, but I've found that there is more of a biting aftertaste in the air afterwards for it to smell like that. Why?"

He had to think about what was said and decipher what his wife meant. Yes, he knew about it smelling a little like eucalyptus, but does a smell have an aftertaste? Pondering the thought a moment, he quickly realized what he had missed. It wasn't candles, teas, or even a chest rub that he smelled; it was medicine used in a nebulizer. Now the question was: why would the Winchester's let people think that their boy was taken from the hospital, what were they hiding?

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Bobby knew that it would be safer to go to the cottage after dark, but that left them either in Lawrence spending the better part of the day trying not to be noticed, or stay in Kansas City until the sun started to go down. Looking next to him he knew that Jim was getting as nervous as he was. The more that they had listened to the radio, the more information they had received. Sam had been in the hospital for two weeks and they had been totally oblivious to it. Pulling into a diner off the highway, he turned off the rental car and sat there staring out the windshield.

"There was no way we could know Bobby." Jim said in the passenger seat. Whether he was trying to convince Bobby or himself, neither men knew.

As they both walked into the small diner, they noticed that is was less crowded than any lunchtime crowd should be. Not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth, they sat in a corner and tried to ignore the strange looks that were being thrown their way. It didn't take long for the waitress to walk to their table with two coffees and two menus. After placing the coffees before them she smiled at their curious looks.

"You both look like you've been rode hard and put up wet, so you get coffee 'cause neither one of you look like you could go much further without it. I have the menus, but I can just tell that you're going to tell me you want whatever the special is, so I already have you're order in and it'll be up in another minute." Then she smiled again and walked up to talk to the cook.

Bobby and Jim looked at each other and wondered what was going on. Bobby glanced around while taking a drink of his coffee and noticed that more than just a few stares were being tossed in their direction. He waited until the waitress came back with their order before he asked "I don't want to be rude, but what got stuck in everyone's craw today?"

Looking over her shoulder to the small amount of people in the diner, she gave them all a harsh look before turning back around. "They don't mean any harm, they're just watching strangers a littler closer right now." Seeing that the didn't know what she meant she explained, "I don't know if you've heard the news, but there's a town not too far from here that is trying to find the person who attacked a little boy on his own property. The poor little guy was in a coma for weeks, and as soon as he woke up, he disappeared from his hospital room. So now we all are a little more diligent about newcomers."

Jim looked up at the waitress and knew that it never occurred to her or others that it probably wasn't a newcomer or even someone passing through, that it was most likely someone Sam had met that put him in the hosptal. Although he normally would feel better knowing that people in the community were taking necessary precautions, he couldn't get rid of the feeling that the only danger they had to deal with were themselves.

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Sam knew that they were talking about him, but he felt too tired to do anything more than listen. As he heard all the things that were wrong with him, he had to wonder why he woke up at all. After Dr. Lucas said that Dr. Morris wanted him, Sam didn't feel any better about it, in fact the thought made him scared. Being sick was bad enough, but now he knew that he was making is family's life even harder. Still lost in thoughts he didn't know that anyone was watching him until he felt someone wipe his tears away.

Caleb was the closest, so he was already trying to calm Sam down by the time Mary, John and Dean got to the couch. Seeing that the boy's family had things under control, Caleb went back to the table and looked harshly at Damon. "If you even _think_ about hurting this family, I'll make you're death slow and painful." Caleb promised before walking over and getting another cup of coffee.

Dean had perched himself on the back of the couch and started stroking Sammy's hair while watching the tears fall from his little brother's eyes. Not knowing what else to do, he continued, all the while whispering words of encouragement.

John and Mary didn't know what was wrong, but they did know that an upset Sammy right now was not what they needed. Their little boy had just started to breathe better, and now he was getting upset and they could hear him labor with each breath again. Not sure how much more Sammy could take; they motioned Dr. Lucas over to check on him. It only took a minute before the nebulizer was hooked up again and another treatment was started. So involved with their little boy, they didn't know anyone had pulled up until they heard the car doors close.


	12. Chapter 12

When they heard the sound of car doors shutting, everyone in the room – with the exception of Sammy – jumped up and immediately looked out the window expecting to see the police outside ready to search the house. After a brief stunned silence, they breathed a collective sigh of relief when they saw it was Penny and Jack followed closely by Jessica and Mariah. Mary looked at John and shrugged her shoulders not sure what was going on. They knew that their friends would come by the house, then they were all going to discuss what their next move would be, but as far as they knew the girls hadn't been told anything.

Any questions they may have had were quickly answered when the door was flung open and two bodies of energy made a beeline straight for Sammy. Caleb reached out and pulled both girls into his arms before they reached Sammy and before they were able to jump on the couch. Not understanding what the problem was, both girls started kicking and screaming to be put down, eventually making Dean so mad he went over and got in their faces.

"Stop it!" Dean hissed, trying to be firm but quiet. "Sammy's sick, and we just got him back to sleep. Now shut up!"

Jessica immediately stopped her struggles and stayed dangling from Caleb's arm in shock. She couldn't understand what Dean meant, if Sammy was sick why wasn't he still in the hospital? Looking around her she noticed that everyone seemed to be watching her and Mariah, and they weren't happy with what they saw. Looking at her sister, she finally understood; Mariah was still trying to kick Caleb.

"_Mariah_ STOP!" Jessica commanded, then watched as her sister stopped her antics and opened her eyes to see why Jessica was so upset with her.

Caleb looked at the two girls and decided they could be trusted enough to be let loose.

Penny couldn't believe what her girls had been about to do. It was bad enough that they had barged in, but they were going to practically attack Sammy right were he slept. Sighing, she looked at Mary and shook her head. "Sorry about that. They heard us talking about Sammy and put enough together to realize that we'd see you today."

Smiling, Mary understood; it wasn't the first time the girls were too smart for their own good. "Girls, come in and have some juice, it'll be awhile before Sammy's up for visitors."

John looked at Jack with a questioning glance, and his friend didn't wait long to tell him what was on his mind. "We received a couple of visits, and some phone calls about Sam. The police wanted to make sure that we weren't hiding him somewhere away from you, why they would think that I have no idea, but then again not much in this town is making much sense right now."

Damon was watching Sam sleep during his breathing treatment, and was relieved to see that it was still working. When he heard what Jack had said, he was listening intently, knowing that he would most likely be the next to get a call. "You said you got calls, who else?" he asked, but was pretty sure about one of them and the thought made him mad.

Penny looked apologetically to John then to Mary before she answered. "Dr. Morris. He wanted to know if we had noticed anything different about Sammy, and if we thought you had any role in his disappearance from the hospital. I couldn't believe his audacity after everything he put you through before. Why in the world would he think that he has any right to ask about our little boy like that?" Penny was upset, and getting more so by the second. It hadn't escaped anyone's attention that she had classified Sammy as one of her children, but they all knew that it was more because of her love for him and Dean than any sick obsession that seemed to have taken hold of so many people lately.

Watching the exchange between the Moore's and the Winchester's, Damon was more determined than ever to make sure that Morris didn't get his unethical hands on any of them. It was time to start digging for a way to help this family out of this mess, even if it meant he had to cash in a favor.

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Betty had watched Damon walk out of her house, and the feeling of dread started to grow in her chest. As she walked back to what was once her grandson's room, she knew that she did the right thing, after all Dr. Morris was not a good person and he definitely did _not_ have the littlest Winchester's best interest at heart.

Sitting in the rocking chair and looking around the room, she remembered all to well the pain of losing a child. She couldn't remember the last time that she was able to enjoy a moment without remembering the exact same occasion only with Zack close by.

Helping Damon with the Winchester boy came naturally. After all, if it hadn't been for Damon, she would have been put in a padded room a long time ago. She still had her suspicions about what happened to Zack, but she'd be damned if she could prove it. One thing was certain though; if she had a chance she'd make Dr. Matthew Morris pay.

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Dr. Cheney knew that both Dr. Lucas and Betty had the day off, and God he knew that both of them needed it, but he couldn't help but wonder about the timing between their absence and the disappearance from the boy in PICU. The police investigators hadn't found anything suspicious, and none of the other staff members were concerned with the coincidence. Then again, they also didn't know the things he did about the goings on in the hospital. Things that a certain doctor thought he was hiding well. Unfortunately, every time there was an investigation, the information that had been anonymously tipped to the authorities would go missing.

Walking through the hallways of his hospital he knew more times than not which of his staff members were on property and where they were stationed for their shift. However, he couldn't seem to pinpoint Dr. Morris, and that made him very uncomfortable. He loathed putting young Samuel Winchester in the line of fire, but he also knew that the madman Morris had to be stopped. Now all he had to do was find the boy, and that lunatic would follow.

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Sammy had been sleeping most of the day, and Dean found that little brother watching wasn't the most exciting thing to be doing – unless said little brother missed a breath, then things took on a _whole_ different perspective. Having that happen once in the last three hours, forty five minutes and eighteen seconds was more than enough for Dean. Being told that Sammy, _his_ Sammy, was alright and it was just a brief anomaly in his breathing didn't help his fears either. That was when he refused to move away from him even to go to the bathroom; no one could watch Sammy better than he could.

Jessica had cautiously moved closer to Dean earlier and when he didn't say anything, she quickly took up post on the other side of the couch and started watching Sammy sleep too. When Mariah crept up to the couch an hour later, she was met by a harsh glare and what sounded suspiciously like a growl, whether from Dean or Jessica no one knew.

Mary watched as her son and her 'niece' watched over Sammy like a pair of Guardian Angels and smiled. 'He sure needs more than one.' She thought as she watched for another moment before returning back to the conversation at hand.

They had all agreed that they needed to wait until Sammy got better before he could make his appearance again, but the question was – how long would that be? The all knew that he was still fighting his illness, and he was fighting it with everything he had, but the doctor in the room had no real way of knowing if he was getting better or not. To take a blood test and run it in a lab would raise suspicions, as well as sneaking the boy into Radiology to get an x-ray. The only thing they could do was wait and hope that the nebulizer along with the antibiotics were working, and if for some reason he got worse, then they would have to take a chance and hope that no one noticed a seriously ill child who went missing suddenly appearing for a chest work up and blood work. _Sure, piece of cake._

Caleb had been silent for most of the conversation, since he would lend his expertise when it came to protecting the family and or smuggling Sam wherever he needed to go. Watching the young doctor though, he got the distinct feeling that they weren't being told everything and he was starting to itch at the prospect of beating the crap out of something, or _someone_, to get the answers. He didn't know why all of a sudden he was feeling leery of Damon Lucas, but he had the distinct impression that he definitely wouldn't like whatever it was that the other guy was hiding. Leaning back in his chair, Caleb looked at the clock and realized that Bobby and Jim would be there in approximately three hours. That was enough to calm him down enough to not want to wring the doctor's neck – for now.

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Sam was dreaming, and he wished now more than ever he was a normal little boy who could dream about sailboats and airplanes, or even about puppies and kittens, but he wasn't normal. Instead he had to dream about how no matter how it happened, he still hurt his daddy, and that was unforgivable. He knew more than ever that he was going to be sent away because he had been bad. He didn't know why he couldn't be good, but no matter how hard he tried, it always ended up wrong.

_Over and over he saw the day that he and his daddy went to the pond and he learned how to fish. He saw how happy he was and how happy his daddy was watching him. Then it changed and daddy wasn't happy anymore, he was angry and towered over him like an angry bear and he couldn't move, not even when the angry bear started to tear him apart._

Sam woke up screaming and couldn't catch his breath, every breath he took was painful and he couldn't seem to get past it. He saw Dean in front of him, talking to him, but he couldn't make out the words. He saw his mommy standing next to Dean talking to him, but what scared him the most was when he saw his daddy, that was when everything inside him seemed to shut off and he slipped back into the darkness, back where there were no dreams and no thoughts, only peace and quiet.

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Dean was frantic, he'd been yelling for Sammy to calm down but it was as if his little brother couldn't hear him, which worried him more. Another complication was not what his little brother needed. When their mom tried, she didn't have any luck, but didn't seem to make it worse either, but when Sammy saw Dad, that was when the feeling of panic practically overwhelmed him and he knew it was coming from Sammy. He couldn't tell what made Sammy so scared of Dad, but he knew that something bad was going to happen if they couldn't get him to calm down.

When Sammy passed out, Damon rushed to his side and after taking only a cursory glance at his patient's vitals scooped the little boy in his arms and headed for the door. "It's show time people. I hope someone can make up a good lie by the time we get there." No one had to be told twice, something had happened to Sammy and it wasn't good. Now they just had to get him to the hospital and hope that they all could stick to a story that was being woven as they went.

Damon was holding the small boy in his arms and was feeling as distressed as the family. He knew that it would only take a few minutes to get to the hospital the way that the Winchester's flew down the road, but he wasn't sure Sam had a few minutes. The injection he'd given Sam as soon as they got him in the car wasn't working, and that worried him more than any of his other ailments. If he was suddenly having a reaction to the medicines then he was going to have a tougher time than anyone initially thought. Suddenly, the doctor felt a change and yelled at John "PULL OVER, NOW!"

John didn't know what was going on, but he knew one thing, if there was something more wrong with Sammy, they needed to get it taken care of fast! Stopping suddenly on the side of the road, John turned and looked into the back seat and was horrified by what he saw. The doctor was cutting into his little boy's throat! Reaching over the seat to stop what was happening, he was shocked when Caleb stopped him.

"John, he has to do this." Caleb said as gently as possible, moving John's arm back to the seat.

They watched in horrified fascination as Dr. Lucas not only cut into Sammy's throat but finished putting the trach tube in and taped it off by himself, but it took only another few moments before they saw Sammy's chest rise and fall on its own. Sighing with relief, both John and Caleb were preparing to return to the road when they were surprised by Damon's abrupt exit from the car. Puzzled, they both looked back at Sammy, then turned to watch the young doctor start pacing frantically as he was screaming.

"GOD DAMNIT! I'M GOING TO KILL HIM! I'M GOING TO KILL HIM AND SEND HIM BACK TO THE HELL WHERE HE BELONGS!"

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Betty had finally let her sorrow out, by beating out bread dough for her church group's annual Fall Festival and Bake Sale when she remembered she had left her cup of coffee in Zack's room. Shaking her head and mumbling to herself about getting too old, she made her way into the room and out of habit started straightening the toys and bed linens. Noticing something had rolled next to the small book case she reached out and saw it was one of the vials of medicine that Damon had picked up. Laughing to herself about getting senile she stopped suddenly as soon as she saw the back of the label, then panicked when she realized where she saw that batch number before.

"Oh my God! It can't be, I got rid of all of those… I know I did!" she exclaimed as she ran down the hallway to the phone, praying that Damon had the sense to have his stupid and annoying cellular phone on him. If not, she may have just condemned little Sammy to death.

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AN: Yes, I know... I'm mean and cruel... but you still want to know what happens don't you? So, let me know what you think (uh... about the story)! ;) 


	13. Chapter 13

AN: Sorry for the wait... sick kid at home and things are kind of nuts. Thanks again to Sammygirl967 for all your encouragement... hope you had a blast tonight!

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Dean was pacing back and forth like a caged animal and for what seemed like the hundredth time, looked at the clock that sat on the mantle. He hated that he had to stay behind, that he had to wait and pretend to get the news that his dad and Caleb had found Sammy and were now at the hospital. He hated most of all that it was _his_ plan.

Stopping in the middle of the room, Dean growled in frustration at how long it was taking, but mostly because whatever he had felt from Sammy earlier was gone. Now he felt in the dark, not knowing if his little brother was ok or not. No, he definitely did _not_ like having a limited range where his link with Sammy came into play. 'Damnit! How long does it take to get to the hospital?' he thought, going over the plan in his head. His dad and Caleb were to claim that they had found Sammy hidden away somewhere and after seeing how sick he was, called Dr. Lucas on the way to the hospital. Luckily Uncle Jack had gotten a new phone that they could use and call Damon 'on the way' in case anyone checked. He remembered the look of surprise on everyone's faces after he suggested it. Finally they accepted it after he said, "What? We can't _all_ walk in there and claim we found him." Now, he and his mom were waiting impatiently for the phone to ring, and the longer it took, the more he was getting that 'something's gone wrong' feeling.

Mary watched as her son paced the house, and knew exactly how he felt. She didn't like the idea of letting Sammy out of her sight for a moment, much less twenty, either. Now as she too watched the clock, she knew something had gone wrong, something horribly wrong. Glancing around the room, she noticed that the girls were trying very hard to be quiet, but in the process were practically bouncing on the balls of their feet with Penny and Jack close by standing at the ready for when they were needed.

Just when everyone in the room thought the tension was getting unbearable, the phone rang and changed everything once again.

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John and Caleb watched as Damon continued his tirade for another minute then jumped in the backseat once again. "I'll explain on the way, we have to get Sam in the ER NOW!"

That was all John needed to hear. Turning back around, he pressed the accelerator to the floor and listened for any signs of his boy waking, a part of him sure that this whole thing is just a nightmare and when he wakes up in a cold sweat screaming Sammy's name, his beautifully sweet wife will tell him it's all a dream. However there's another part of him that knows that's not true, and it makes him want to scream even louder.

As they slid into the ambulance bay at the ER entrance, Damon had already jumped out of the car with Sam in his arms before the car completed its stop. By the time John and Caleb got into the hospital, Damon was already issuing orders and hooking Sam up to machines and starting an IV, making sure that everyone knows that no one goes near the boy without his permission. As they continued to work on Sam, John stood guard while Caleb went to make the call. Unfortunately, it didn't look like it was going to be the call they were expecting to make; little Sam had fallen back into a coma due to respiratory distress.

Damon couldn't believe what was happening. It was bad enough that somehow he gave Sam a dose of the contaminated medicine, but he had to do a field tracheotomy in the back of a car, and now had to find out if there's an underlying cause for his coma. 'This is going to be a long night.' He thought as he made adjustments to the IV flow, watching closely for any signs that Sam would do a repeat performance as the hospital's 'little miracle.'

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Jack was driving as fast as his dared with Mary and Dean in the car with him. He knew it was bad as soon as Mary said that it was Caleb who called, but then she had to explain further that Sam had started going into anaphylactic shock and had to have a tube put in him on the way. Now he had to make sure that the remaining member of his best friend's family got to the hospital in one piece, both mentally and physically. Looking in the rear view mirror, he saw that Dean looked as if he was getting ready to jump out and try to outrace them to their destination. Mary didn't look much better, but he knew that she would continue to hold up, if for no other reason than to try and be strong for Dean.

Mary wanted the day to be over, no that wasn't true… she wanted to go back before Sammy got hurt and change what happened. She couldn't believe how her little boy was hurt again, and this time right under their noses. She couldn't understand how it happened, but she was damn sure she was going to find out and make sure it didn't happen again.

'Can't we go any faster?' Dean thought as he sat tense in the backseat trying to resist the urge to jump out and take his chances on foot. 'Sammy could be dead by now for all… NO… he's ok… I'd know if..' his thoughts were broken when the hospital came into view.

Before the car came to a stop, both Mary and Dean had jumped out and were running through the door. Both were sure they would know if their Sammy wasn't with them anymore, but there was no way either one of them was going to wait until someone decided to confirm that. Mary wasted no time in yelling for John, while Dean took to shouting Sammy's name down the hallway, both ignoring the strange and indignant looks they were receiving.

John heard both Mary and Dean yelling and quickly stepped into the hallway to let him know where they were. He was hoping it would take a little longer for them to get there, considering that it was going to break their hearts to see Sammy on the ventilator again; hell it broke _his_ heart.

Mary was hoping the whole way to the hospital that it was a mistake, that Caleb didn't have all the information or maybe he was mislead, but one look at her husband made her realize that it was all true. Now, as she stood in front of the room, she was suddenly afraid that her worst nightmare was coming true; that she was losing another one of her babies.

Dean saw his dad and noticed his mom hesitate. Knowing that the looks being exchanged couldn't be good, he wanted to start shouting that it wasn't true; that Sammy was ok and they made a mistake. Pushing past his dad he forced the door open and took in the scene before him.

Damon had just finished running the tests he needed to make sure the ventilator was inputting properly, and had arranged for an MRI to be scheduled as soon as Radiology could be vacated; he wasn't taking any chances. Waiting for the blood work results to get back, but knowing what it would show, he continued to watch the little boy and his father in front of him. John hadn't moved from his spot next to Sam since the equipment had been in place and the techs had vacated the room. It was a few minutes later when they both heard shouting on the other end of the hall. Watching as John went to the door, Damon moved to take Sam's hand, not wanting the boy to feel alone. He heard the door open, and saw Dean rush in then slide to a stop, his face so pale his freckles stood out more. Giving Dean an encouraging smile, Damon motioned the teen into the room and moved out of the way as Dean crawled into bed with his little brother and started singing through his tears.

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Dr. Matthew Morris couldn't believe his luck, the boy was back and he didn't have to do anything for it to happen. Now all he had to do was wait until the boy was alone and he'd be able to start on finding out what makes little Samuel Winchester tick… or tock… either was ok with him, as long as he got what he wanted. Leaning back in his chair he smiled at the thought of what his research could yield, of course others would benefit from it, but mostly it would fulfill his dream of being known for a major break through, to be able to have his accomplishments taught in schools, but mostly never having to worry about people second guessing his work again.

Reaching across his desk he called the nurses station in the ER to check the status of his next… patient.

"I'm sorry Dr. Morris, we are not allowed to share that information." Came the voice on the other end of the line.

Shocked, he paused for a moment before replying, "I understand that you're not to release information to just anyone, however, you must know that does not pertain to other doctors in the hospital."

"Dr. Morris, I was given express instructions that _no one_, including staff, was to be given _any_ information about Dr. Lucas' patient."

Angry, Morris slammed the phone down and stood up quickly knocking his chair back into the wall before he picked it up and threw it across the room, relieved to see that it had missed a merit award given to him by the Board of Regents from his Alma Mater. Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to calm down. After all, losing patience wasn't going to help him gain his prize; no… he'd need some special help with that. Smiling, he walked out of his office to find his wonderful _helper_.

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Caleb had taken up guard duty as soon as he finished talking to Mary on the phone; he knew that John would want to be with Sammy as soon as he was able to get to the boy's side. Now he watched as the Winchester's gathered, once again, around little Sam's bed and prayed for a miracle. Feeling a nudge as his side, he glanced over and saw Dr. Lucas motion for him to follow outside.

Once in the hallway, Caleb motioned to the doctor to get with it. He wanted to be in there in case he was needed. Finally the young doctor got to the point and made Caleb question his earlier doubts about the man. "I've scheduled Sam's MRI in half an hour and I want everyone going up there with us. There is no way I'm going to risk losing him in the hospital, or have Morris take advantage of the situation." When Caleb looked at him questioningly he sighed "Look, we can't prove it, but the general consensus is that Morris had something to do with Betty's grandson's death."

"WHAT?!? What the hell is that bastard still here for then?" Caleb hissed at the doctor, wondering why he even bothered to second (or was it third) guess himself.

Motioning for Caleb to quiet down, he continued to explain. "Like I said, no one could prove it, and he ignored the pressure on him to quit. I don't like the idea that he's still here, and if it was up to me he'd have a damn bullet in his head." Looking away for a moment, he tried to get his anger under control. "Betty's grandson was diagnosed with chronic severe asthma, he lived for two years with it and then all of a sudden Morris comes up with this 'research' and was trying to get Betty to agree to his treatment. When she refused, Zach suddenly became ill and didn't respond to his normal treatments. The blood work didn't show anything out of the ordinary, but we finally were able to trace the anomalies to a specific batch of medicines that he had been given to him. It wasn't until later that we found out that Morris had come into direct contact with that batch during and unscheduled inventory check; supposedly for missing supplies." Leaning back against the wall he let his head fall back and hit the painted surface. "Look, if we don't do something soon, Sam will die just like Zack, and by the looks of it, it will destroy the Winchester's."

Stunned, Caleb looked at the doctor and wondered about what he had just heard. Not knowing if Damon could really be trusted, he knew he was going to have to go talk the one person who would know; he needed to ask Nurse Betty what killed her grandson.

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Bobby and Jim had pulled onto the backside of the property and managed to conceal the car a half hour after the final rays disappeared behind the horizon. Making their way through the trees they took the time to make sure they didn't leave a trail and when they finally reached the cottage they both felt sense of relief that they had finally made it; now maybe they could figure out what was going on.

Knowing that they were expected, but not stupid to think that someone wouldn't notice two people barging into the house, stopped to knock a signal that they had worked out with Caleb a while back then walked in only to have the sound of buckshot hitting the plaster above their heads meet their ears.

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AN: Sorry it seemed short... still trying to get everything done. Let me know how it was though! 


	14. Chapter 14

AN: hey everyone... been a very busy week, but now have to say that it has been a wonderful day. To my Jessiegirl... Happy 15th baby! This one's for you! ;)

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Sam didn't know where he was but he wasn't scared as he looked around and saw a large field surrounding him. He was concerned that he didn't see Dean or his Mommy or Daddy, but he thought that he'd find them later. Not paying attention he was shocked by a voice behind him.

"Don't worry Sam, you'll see your family soon." A boy told him as he walked closer.

Looking at the boy in front of him, he was very curious who it could be. The boy was smaller than him, with blue eyes, freckles, and light blonde hair. Not seeing anyone else around, Sam quickly asked. "Where are we?"

The boy smiled and took Sam's hand, leading him along the field until they came to a stream. "It's a waiting place. Your supposed to stay here until it's time to back."

Puzzled, Sam looked up and down the stream and even looked to the other side. Not seeing anything out of the ordinary, he sat on the grass and waited for the other boy to do the same. "Are you waiting too?" he asked curious why there weren't more people around.

"No, I've already been here and I went somewhere else. I was asked to come wait here with you though." The boy said watching Sam with big eyes as if he was amazed at being able to talk to him.

"Oh, ok. Ummm… who asked?" Sam returned the boy's curious gaze and wondered at who the boy really was.

Finally the boy smiled widely and stretched out his hand. "I'm Zack Kelly! You're Samuel Winchester and I was asked by people who love you a whole lot!" Zack exclaimed happily, not noticing the shocked look on Sam's face.

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Caleb was about to get more information about Betty so he could ask her a few questions when he and Damon heard running coming up the hallway. When they both turned, they saw Betty running towards them looking frantic. "DAMON! PLEASE TELL ME IT'S NOT SAM… PLEASE DAMON! PLEASE!"

Damon held her close and tried to calm the normally composed woman, but knew that until she knew that little Sam Winchester was going to be ok, she wouldn't be her normal self. "Betty, listen to me. I don't know how it happened, but…"

"There was a left over vial in Zack's room, and when I looked it was from that shipment. Oh my God, Damon! What have I done! I could have sworn that I made sure we had tossed all of them!" She continued to cry knowing what the little boy was going through having watched her small grandson suffer for too long after the effects of the tampered drug.

Caleb had been able to piece the story together, and realized that whatever vibe he was getting from the doctor had nothing to do with Sam's condition. Reaching over to the sobbing nurse, he quietly spoke to her. "Betty, no one is blaming you, you had nothing to do with this except to try and help a little boy who probably reminded you of Zack."

Betty looked between the two men, and although she still felt awful, she knew that there was a family in that room that was feeling much worse. Taking a deep breath she wiped the tears from her eyes and with a solid voice said, "I want that bastard to pay!" then knocked on the door before she entered so she could see the family who she had inadvertently hurt. As soon as she walked in her heart felt like it had been ripped to pieces. Dean was singing a Zeppelin song that she had always been fond of, to his brother while laying next to him staying in constant contact. John and Mary were holding each other close as they watched both of there sons on the bed in front of them. Walking up to the bed, she ran a hand through Sam's hair then walked back out of the room knowing what she needed to do.

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Dr. Morris knew that it was going to be easier than he had initially thought as soon as he saw who was working in Radiology. His pal Kevin was working and if he knew anything it was how much Kevin wanted to impress him. Smiling, he walked up to Kevin and waited until the young man had finished sorting the films for the ER.

Kevin had just turned around and saw the person that he considered his mentor. "Dr. Morris, I didn't know you were on call today!" he said ecstatically. He had been wanting to run a few theories by him, but had been told repeatedly that the doctor had a booked solid schedule; maybe this would end up being his lucky day.

Smiling, Morris let Kevin get that look on his face – the one where he wanted to talk to him about some off the wall theory that no one would ever give him a second to pitch, then he lured the other man in. "Kevin, I'm needing you're help with a very sensitive matter."

"Sure Dr. Morris, anything you need."

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Bobby was the first to recover and when he looked up from his position on the floor he couldn't believe what he saw; little Jessica Moore holding a shotgun almost as big as she was. "Oh my… I'm sorry Mr. Bobby, I thought you were…" she couldn't finish what she was going to say. By the time both Bobby and Jim had stood up, Penny had run into the room, shocked by what she saw.

Taking the gun from her oldest daughter, Penny tried to sound calm and casual when she quipped "I guess I don't have to ask where you learned how to do that." Penny knew she should be upset, but she also knew that she only had her parents to blame; apparently not having any grandsons made them more determined to make sure the girls knew how to take care of themselves. She was momentarily stunned however when she heard Jessica's reply.

"Don't tell Grandpa I missed."

Jim didn't know how to respond to that, so instead sent up a silent prayer of 'Thanks' that for whatever reason, the little girl _had_ missed her target.

A few minutes later, after their adrenaline had gone back to normal, they made their way back into the living room, Penny answering questions along the way.

"So, how's Sam doing now?" Bobby asked, not liking the idea that the boy was once again suffering.

Penny shook her head, "We don't know. The hospital isn't releasing any information to anyone and no one has called us yet. Knowing Jack though, he's in surveillance mode; checking out everyone and everything that's close by.

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Jack had parked the car and made his way back to the ER knowing that he wasn't going to like what he found. By the time he found Caleb in the hallway, he saw that the hunter had company. Watching Caleb's reaction to Dr. Lucas was interesting, but not too alarming considering his past with Sam. As he was about to join the two men, they were joined by Betty. Listening to their conversation made Jack realize that he had forgotten about the incident with the tampered medicine, it had the whole hospital in an uproar for awhile. Although nothing was proven, the rumor was that Dr. Morris had been working on a new treatment for asthma that was to work in concert with the very medication that had to be disposed of. Seeing Betty walk out of Sam's room, Jack knew that the only way they were going to get answers was if he started looking into Morris himself.

Making his way up the back stairs he arrived at Morris' office within a few minutes and quickly worked his way inside. Knowing that Matthew Morris wasn't going to keep incriminating files out in the open, he quickly searched for anything that might lead him to where he could find the answers.

After a few minutes he stumbled on a location that he could not believe and had to double check what he saw. "You have got to be kidding." He muttered, wondering why no one had thought to check there before.

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Sam sat with Zack and watched the water go by, neither saying a word, both comfortable in the silence. A few minutes later Zack smiled. "Listen Sam!"

Not knowing what the other boy meant, it took a moment for Sam to realize they weren't alone. He could hear something like it was far away, but as he listened it was getting closer until he knew who it was.

"Zack, it's Dean!" Sam exclaimed happily "He's here!"

Zack continued to smile, but shook his head. "No Sam, he's there with you, but you're here with me. You can hear him, but you won't be able to see him until you go back."

Not understanding what the other boy meant, he was convinced that Dean was there to take him back home. "Dean!" he shouted, wanting nothing more than anything for his big brother to hear him. "Dean, I'm here! Dean!" he continued to shout even as he realized that Dean wasn't looking for him; he was singing to him.

Sitting back down on the grass, Sam put his head down on his knees and started to cry. All he wanted to do was go home, nothing else… just to go home. Zack gave Sam a hug and held him close until they both fell asleep on the soft grass, listening to the water go by.

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He couldn't believe his luck, that fool Kevin was going to help him get into the boy's room and then he would find the answers he sought. Watching Kevin gather the equipment needed gave him a sense of utter happiness, it wouldn't be long now.

It didn't take song for Kevin to position the portable X-Ray machine outside Sam's room, and since he was so well known, no one gave him a second glance; until he walked into the room.

John had been holding Mary close and listening to his sons, one singing while the other breathing mechanically, when he heard the door open and a young man in scrubs walked in.

"I'm here to take a scan of Sam, I'm afraid you all will need to leave the room for a few minutes."

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Deputy McKee had heard the news that Samuel Winchester had been found and was admitted to the hospital in critical condition. Not sure what to make of this new development with his earlier questions still on his mind, he quickly made his way to the hospital to find out what was really going on. It didn't take too long for him to find the room and see that the boy's family was in the hallway in the middle of a physical confrontation with hospital security all the while yelling, "He can't be left alone!"

By the time that he got to the group, he knew that either this family had been abusing Sam and should win an Emmy for their performance, or they were really terrified about what was happening to the boy. Finally the mother's screams penetrated his confused brain. "Dr. Lucas didn't order in room tests! He ordered no one in the room without permission!"

Something hit McKee when he heard that, he knew Damon Lucas to be conscientious and also knew that he would invoke a restricted access order on a patient if he felt the patient was in danger. The way the family was fighting, he knew something more was going on so when he rushed to the door, he was hoping that it was just paranoia on their part, but as he swung the door open he couldn't believe what he saw and immediately drew his weapon.

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AN: Well, are you guys wondering what the deputy is wanting to shoot? Don't worry, you'll hate me and love me for it... trust me! 


	15. Chapter 15

AN: Sorry for the delay... internet problems and a sick child will do it everytime.

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When John heard the man tell him that they had to leave the room while he ran a scan on Sammy, he laughed. There was no way in Hell he or anyone else in their family was going to walk out willingly and leave Sammy alone. After calmly explaining that fact to the man, he was shocked to watch as the phone was picked up and security was called. At this point Mary had tuned into the conversation and looked between the man in scrubs and her husband. "John what's going on?" she asked hearing the man, _Kevin was it?_, call for security. Not believing what she was hearing she turned back to him "Excuse me, but why are you calling security?" when she received no answer she knew something was wrong and positioned herself with John in front of her boys.

Before they had a chance to do anything else, two men in security uniforms stormed into the room and looked at Kevin for answers. "They're refusing treatment and not allowing me to check on my patient." He said, trying to sound urgent.

"WHAT?" John yelled, wondering where Dr. Lucas was.

"Ok, let's all go out in the hallway and…"

"NO!" Mary yelled standing firmly in between them and her sons. She knew that Dean was watching closely but hadn't stopped trying to through to Sammy. She couldn't have been more proud of him.

Although things were tense, there was no way that anyone wanted the situation to escalate while they were in a room with a sick child. However, one of the guards reached over to take Mary by the arm. "Ma'am, if we could discuss this out in the hall…" and all hell broke loose.

John grabbed the guard and slammed him up against the wall while the other guard did his best to pry John off. Mary opened the door to yell for help which got two other guards in the room, but upon seeing John 'attacking' one of their own, went to help the first two guards which prompted Dean to jump off Sammy's bed to help. By the time the guards manhandled both John and Dean out the door; Mary had tried to go back into the room but was grabbed from behind by one of the original guards, enraging John further. No matter how much Mary tried to explain Dr. Lucas' orders and that Sammy couldn't be alone, they would not let her or her family go.

Finally thought she saw the deputy that had come to the house and knew that they might have another chance. "Dr. Lucas didn't order any in room tests! He ordered no one in the room without permission." Seeing the deputy go to the room eased her anxiety a bit; until she saw him remove his gun from its holster. 'OH GOD, NO!'

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Dr. Morris saw the pile of people wrestling for the upper hand and knew his plan worked perfectly. Taking advantage of the distraction, he quickly and quietly made his way into the room where Kevin waited for his next assignment.

"Very good Kevin. Now I need you to turn off the heart monitor then the ventilator, while I prepare the serum."

Kevin hesitated, "Doctor? Is that necessary? Won't the serum work with the vent on?"

Irritated, Dr. Morris glared at the younger man before demanding "Do it! I will not have my work second guessed by someone who had yet to finish his own studies!"

Stunned, Kevin stood there wondering what he should do. If he did as he was told, then the little boy would die unless Dr. Morris' serum worked. Watching the doctor for a moment, he made the decision and turned the sound off the heart monitor, wanting to make sure that they could still monitor the boy's condition, then walked over and turned the ventilator off. As they both watched, the boy's breathing stopped and soon after, so did his heart.

Taking the syringe in his hand, Morris injected the substance into a vein and waited in anticipation. He knew that the "serum" was just saline solution, but if his theory was correct, then the boy would start breathing on his own. However as the seconds ticked off a minute and there still was no change, the doctor was starting to get agitated.

"Come on… Come on you brat! I know you're going to, now breath!" Morris yelled at Sam, not noticing that the door opened.

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Caleb had seen a diner close by and thought that the Winchester's could use some fresh coffee and maybe a couple of decent sandwiches. Hating the thought of leaving them without at least telling them where he was going, he quickly brushed the thought to the side knowing that they were needing time with Sam without interruption.

Carrying the coffee's and sandwiches, he was almost to the hospital entrance when he heard his name shouted across the parking lot. Turning around he saw not only Penny and the girls, but also Bobby and Jim walking his way. Smiling, he watched as both Jessica and Mariah tried to break free from their mother, but wasn't succeeding too much in that venture.

As they all stood there outside the entrance, Caleb realized that he was actually happy to see the other two hunters. He wasn't expecting trouble, but that was usually when it would happen the worst. He was about to share his thoughts when they heard a gunshot from inside the hospital followed by screams.

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McKee couldn't believe what he saw when he walked in the door. The ventilator was off, the silent heart monitor was showing no rhythm, and a doctor was standing over the little boy in the bed yelling at him. Every instinct was telling him that there was no ending to how wrong this scene was, and took his gun out of its holster as quietly as possible, then commanded the two men in the room not to move.

"FOOL! I am about to prove an incredible theory, you can't interrupt now!" Morris yelled at the deputy as if the officer was of no consequences.

"Step away from the boy!" the deputy demanded tightening the grip on his revolver.

"Wake up boy! Show them what you can do!" Morris continued to yell at Sam as if he didn't have a care in the world except to prove that the boy was just sleeping.

Seeing that the doctor was completely off his rocker, the deputy demanded again "I said step away from the boy or I will remove you!"

Morris snorted his disbelief and continued to watch Sam's chest, willing it to rise and prove him right. It wasn't until he felt his shoulder snap back and he himself falling that he realized that maybe he shouldn't have pushed the deputy.

McKee fired his weapon to disable, hoping that the doctor wouldn't decide to be more insane. The sound of the gun discharging in the room echoed in his ears, but he rushed to the call button and tried to get someone to come to the room, but the ringing that was still traveling through his head made it hard to hear anything. It took him a moment to remember that there was another person in the room, and it was only because Kevin moved to turn the ventilator back on.

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Everyone in the hallway froze when they heard the gunshot in Sammy's room, but that didn't last long. John, breaking free from the guards who were trying to pin him against a wall ran across to the door with Mary and Dean close behind. As they pushed the door open, they saw their worst fears come to life; Sammy showing no signs of life, and Dr. Morris next to his bed. Before any of the Winchester's could do or say anything, a hoard of doctors and nurses filled the room and started the process of reviving Sammy.

Deputy McKee was still confused about the specifics of what was going on, but he knew what he saw and there was no way anyone was going to be able to convince him that the doctor he shot had anything except malevolent intent towards the boy. Seeing that Dr. Lucas was present and barking orders to the others, the deputy quickly took Morris by the elbow and forced him out of the room looking at John as he walked by. "I know that you have you're hands full, but if you could come out and answer some questions I'd really appreciate it." He said, hoping that he was able to convey the importance of the matter without putting undue stress on the family.

Dr. Lucas didn't even look up as he was still attempting to bring Sammy back, "Go with him, I'll let you know when you can come back in."

Walking out in the hallway, Dr. Morris was yelling to anyone and everyone that he was being brutalized and that the police needed to be called. It was the voice of one person however that made his jaw snap shut.

"Deputy, I believe that Dr. Morris has been intentionally harming patients to further his own research." Dr. Cheney said as he and Jack walked up the hall. "I have just been given information that proves that at least a half dozen deaths in this hospital is due to his direct interference, and after I peruse the rest of the files, I am sure I will find more. As is my duty, I and the rest of the hospital staff will cooperate fully with the law."

Jack stood in the background and watched happily as McKee nodded and proceeded to arrest Dr. Morris in the hallway ignoring the rantings and threats that the man was bestowing upon everyone in the general vicinity.

Looking around, Dr. Cheney saw the security guards and shook his head before he walked back the way he came, calling over his shoulder as he went. "Dr. Moore, you will be in my office first thing in the morning to discuss reinstatement I trust?"

Penny heard the Chief of Staff's words and was thrilled by what she heard, but before she gave her husband a hug, she remembered why they were there and what they had heard earlier. "Is Sam ok? What happened?"

Looking at each other then back to their group of friends, the Winchester's shook their heads and turned back to the door to their missing piece of their family.

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Damon refused to give up; there was no way that he was going to let Sam go, especially like this. He had been called up to the surgical wing and had been gone longer than he had expected; leaving enough time for Morris to swoop in and do who knows what. Looking at the tape from the EKG machine, he knew that Sam had been down for five minutes and showing no signs of coming back. More than once he had been advised to let the boy go, but he adamantly refused.

Knowing that with each shock to the little boy's heart, there was an increased chance of damage, he continued to charge the paddles and ordered more adrenaline to be injected into the little body; he knew that there was a family waiting right outside the door waiting to see if they would be allowed to breathe again.

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Caleb and Jim stayed close knowing that they would be needed soon, no matter the outcome. As Jim tried to comfort the girls, Jack made sure to stay close to John and Dean with Mary and Penny side by side. They knew that Dr. Cheney was at the nurses station being filled in on the specifics of the Winchester case, and keeping a respectable distance as not to intrude; but still wanting to be kept informed of what was going on.

The clock on the wall ticked off the seconds, then the minutes until finally it had hit the ten minute mark and that made the anxiety level in the hall mount to a new level. They could still hear Dr. Lucas' voice, and even though they couldn't understand what he was saying, they knew he wasn't going to give up. A few minutes more and the door opened with tired looking nurses exiting the room quickly making their way to other destinations.

Not knowing what to think, John took Mary's hand and put his arm over Dean's shoulder and they slowly made their way to the door only to be cut off by Damon. Looking up, he smiled at the Winchester's, "We brought him back!" Moving backwards, he let them in to see for themselves and although the sight of him still worried them, the sound that greeted them was wonderful; Sammy's heartbeat steady and strong.

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AN: Well? What'd you think? Let me know! 


	16. Chapter 16

AN: Well, at this point you all either probably love me or hate me, ah well! ;) I now have 3 stories going at once... I must be nuts! So, if you have a chance, take a peek at the others.

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It had taken over an hour to get the chaos calmed to a dull roar, and even then Deputy McKee felt like he was in the middle of a spin cycle. The shrink friend of the Winchester's had found information on the crazy doc hidden in a room that most interns used to study and crash during their marathon shifts; ironically it was the other guy Kevin who had helped hide it and let Dr. Morris know through a note attached to a patient's file. Shaking his head, McKee knew that this was definitely a day that he would never forget, especially since the Sheriff had led the procession to take the doctors in custody for murder, attempted murder, conspiracy, and a long list of other charges that he didn't even want to think about at the moment. The only thoughts running through his head was that there was someone that people trusted with their lives who were so brutally betrayed that it made him sick thinking about it; about how many people died because of this person's arrogance.

Looking down the hallway, he knew that there was a family that was still together, and he tried to think about them, but he could only think about the people who were gone. Reaching over he picked up the phone and called home. "Honey, we need to find a new pediatrician."

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Zack was looking at Sam and smiling bigger than he had before, "Sam, it's time to go! C'mon! You can go home now!" Zack said excitedly shaking his new friend awake.

"Hmmm… s'py" Sam murmured, trying very hard to roll onto his other side, but the other wouldn't let him. Opening one eye, Sam couldn't figure out why Zack was so happy.

"Sam! You can go home now!"

Sam sat up and looked at the other boy, "What? How?" He asked, not sure what was supposed to happen.

Smiling, Zack laughed and said "Bye Sam, tell my Nanna I love her…."

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It had been four days since Dr. Lucas had brought their little Sammy back, and two days since the ventilator had been removed. All the scans showed marked improvement and now all they had to do was wait for Sammy to open his eyes and show everyone that he really was ok. When they would ask when it would happen, the answer was the standard _Any time now_ driving everyone in the room a little more stir crazy than what they were before. It wasn't until Betty had stopped in the let them know that she was on duty all night that they saw the most movement out of him in days.

Betty went to call Dr. Lucas knowing that he wanted to be informed of any change in Sam's condition. When she walked back in she saw Sam's family surrounding him giving him the encouragement he needed to open his eyes. By the time she made it across the room he had done just that and after looking at each one of his family he turned to his brother and asked "Dean, where's Zack?" making Betty feel as if the world had just dropped from under her feet.

Dean was more than a little confused, he had no idea who Zack was or why he would be there, but obviously Sammy was sure he should be. Looking at his parent's for guidance, he saw that they were just as confused as he was. "Who's Zack Sammy?" he asked, hoping to stall for some time until they all could figure it out.

Sam looked at his brother and wanted to tell him everything but he was so tired, so he settled for the basics, "My new friend and I have to tell his Nanna…." He drifted back to sleep not knowing the turmoil that his statement caused.

"Oh my God!" Betty croaked, looking at Sam with a mixture of disbelief, horror and something else that no one else could place. Before anyone could stop her though, she ran out of the room bumping into Dr. Lucas along the way.

Damon looked between the retreating back of Betty and the occupants of the room. "What just happened?" he asked, trying to figure out what had caused such a reaction. After he was told however, he knew what had happened, and didn't know if it was a good or bad thing. "Well, that would do it." He said, and then started to explain about Zack as he checked on his favorite patient.

"Betty's daughter became pregnant in college and knew she couldn't take care of a baby and go to college; she was having trouble taking care of herself. Betty, who's a firm opponent to abortion, volunteered to adopt the baby; which made perfect sense since Tanya's boyfriend didn't want anything to do with her after hearing the news. Unfortunately, Betty's husband didn't like the idea either and after several months of fighter over the situation divorced her and left the state not even wanting to know if he had a grandson or daughter. To say that things were tight for her would be an understatement. After Zack was born she had to juggle everything by herself, and did so very well if I'm any judge. Anyway, Zack was about two years old when he was diagnosed with asthma, and things were still going pretty good for them even though she would have to pick up an extra shift now and again to pay for the extra bills coming in. That went on for a little over two years, before Dr. Morris came up with a new treatment that was going to study trials and Zack qualified for it, but Betty had a weird feeling so she refused to sign the consent forms. After that Zack didn't respond as well to his normal treatment. Shortly after is when a batch of meds were tampered with, and to make an even longer story short, Zack suffered in the hospital for over six months before his body couldn't take it anymore. He died after falling into a coma just shy of his fifth birthday."

John looked at Mary trying to get his head around the possibility that their Sammy might have had a conversation with a dead boy, and he knew right then that he was in trouble because it looked like Mary was wrestling with the same thoughts. It wasn't until Dean spoke that things fell back into perspective.

"Well, I guess if our Sammy came from Angels, then he can have a friend who's already crossed over."

Smiling, Jim nodded his head. He'd been hoping that they would feel that way, because he couldn't help but feel that Sam was even more special than what they thought, and that in itself could spell out more trouble for the Winchester's. Looking at Bobby and Caleb, he motioned for them to follow. After getting out of earshot, Jim looked at the other hunters. "I would love to say that Sam is safe, but we still don't know who tried to kill him. I'd feel better if we did our own digging while at the same time stayed on guard duty until we got this straightened out."

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Kevin knew that he was in trouble when the Assistant District Attorney Alex Duram came to see him. Not wanting to make anymore mistakes, Kevin quickly stood and watched as the older man walked into the interrogation room.

"Mr. Sorenson, please sit down." Alex said trying to get a grasp on the person in front of him. The person sitting in front of him didn't have a mean bone in his body from what he'd heard, was always happy to help people which why he was working in the Radiology department while at the same time going to Med school. Looking at the file again he knew that he was missing something and that was something that he hated. "Alright, I think that I have everything in your file, but I need you to answer some questions. Would you like an attorney?"

"No sir, I was asked that already, and I'm ready to cooperate with you as much as I can. After today, I'll never be able to finish school and any chance of staying here after I complete my jail term went up in smoke with it. Ask whatever you want." Kevin said as he watched Alex take out a small tape recorder and a pad of paper, asking permission to record their conversation.

"Kevin, can you tell me why you were so willing to help Dr. Morris with his experiments?"

Shaking his head, Kevin looked at the table while he answered. "I didn't know exactly what was happening. He had told me that he was helping his patients with experimental treatments and that there were people who didn't agree with him and would try to stop his work. When a patient would die, he would get moody and at first I thought it was because he was really heartbroken about the person, not the failure of his treatment. He asked me to hide some of his notes and theories so that the people who were after him wouldn't destroy his hard work. I hid them in an old break room that the interns use to study, I put them behind a wall panel knowing that no one would look there and it was still easy access for Dr. Morris."

"Why would you do this, help him so much?" Alex asked, curious to know what the price of loyalty was now days; the answer shocked him.

"He listened to my theories. I wanted to get into Immunology, and he was willing to let me ask questions and bounce ideas off him. I really had no idea how far off the deep end he'd gone until he told me to turn off the ventilator, that was when I thought something was wrong, but when he started yelling at the boy to breathe but not trying to resuscitate him, I knew that I made a mistake."

Alex looked at the boy in front of him; he couldn't see a man, just a boy who had put too much faith in the wrong person. Unfortunately it had cost too many too much and he would have to pay the price for assisting a mad man commit murder. "Kevin, there is no hard evidence that you knew of Dr. Morris' intent, however you can't just walk free, you interfered in several investigations, not to mention aided in the attempted murder of Samuel Winchester, you will have jail time, but if you help us put Morris away I'm sure we can make a good deal for you. Think about getting an attorney."

Kevin thought about what Mr. Duram said and knew that it could be a whole lot worse. He quickly called for a guard and asked for an attorney.

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Sam knew he had been sleeping, but now all he wanted was to wake up, but he was also afraid. He remembered what happened, well most of it anyway. He remembered going fishing, and hurting his daddy, then running into the woods. After that he got a headache and everything seemed fuzzy. The only thing he knew though was that his daddy must be really mad at him now and that he was really going to be sent away now. That thought above all others made him sad and he felt the tears fall down his cheeks but he was too tired to do anything about it.

"Sammy? Son, wake up, it's ok. You can open you're eyes now."

Confused, Sam did the opposite and closed them tighter, not wanting to see what was really beside him, because he knew that it couldn't be who he thought.

"Come on Sport, you need to look at me… let me know you're alright."

Opening one eye a little bit he noticed that it was dark except for a light by his bed. Taking a chance, he opened the other eye and looked over to where he heard the voice.

"Hey there, you gave us a scare Sammy. How are you feeling?"

Sam didn't know what to say, he say his Daddy but he didn't seem mad. Was it a trick?

"Whoa Buddy, calm down… it's ok, no one's going to hurt you. I promise, ok?" John said, not sure what had caused his boy's heart rate to spike, but not liking the idea that his ill son was scared. "Sammy, I need you to calm down ok? Can you tell me what's wrong?" he asked, hoping that he could figure this out without Dean having to come to the rescue.

Looking at his daddy, Sam finally whispered, "I hurt you Daddy!"

John looked at his Sammy wondering what he was talking about, how could this little boy hurt… oh! Smiling, he took Sammy's hand in his and spoke very softly so he wouldn't scare him anymore. "Sammy, you didn't hurt me. I'm fine, and there is nothing you could do that would ever hurt me except if you were scared of me. Are you?"

Sam didn't know what to say, he knew his daddy was telling the truth, or at least he thought he was. Maybe he was dreaming, that must be it, and he let himself drift back to sleep feeling his hand still in his daddy's.

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AN: Well? Like it, Love it, Hate it? C'mon, you know I won't tell... 


	17. Chapter 17

AN: hey everyone... I appreciate everyone who's still reading and thought that you'd like something a little different, don't worry though, more action coming up soon.

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Dean knew right away that he missed something while he was asleep. He knew that just by the fact that his Dad had Sammy's tiny hand in his and was holding on as if he would never let go. Rubbing his eyes to wake up a bit more he started walking over to them stretching as he went realizing that plastic chairs aren't the place to sleep. 'Next time, I'm grabbing the recliner' he thought moodily as he finally made it to the bed. "Dad," he whispered not wanting to wake the other people in the room "something wrong? Sammy's ok isn't he?" he asked as he checked his brother's heartbeat on the monitor. 

John looked up at Dean and smiled. "He woke up for a minute, but I'm a little concerned."

Not liking how this conversation was going, Dean sat down and waited for his foggy mind to play catch up so he could participate fully in the conversation. "Ok, what's wrong Dad? Does he not know who he is or something?" That was the only thing that his muddled brain could think of, even though after he thought about it, it didn't make sense. "He seemed fine earlier, right? So what changed?"

Shaking his head, John mused that Dean must be watching more of those medical drama shows than what he and Mary thought. "No son, nothing like that. He was scared earlier, scared of me. I couldn't figure it out at first, but then he told me that he hurt me. Can you believe that? A little guy like him thinking he could hurt someone like me." He paused because it _did_ hurt, just not the way Sammy thought. It hurt to know that he had inadvertently caused his son pain. "Dean, I think he believes that I'm mad about the hook incident. I tried to let him know I wasn't, but he fell asleep again. What if he continues to think that? What if he becomes scared of me?" he asked, wishing that his little boy would wake up again and they could get everything straightened out.

Blinking at what he just heard, Dean wasn't sure what to think. "Dad, are you sure about that? Nevermind, I know the answer to that. You're probably right, he's probably worried that you're still mad at him and it might take a few tries to convince him that you're not. You know how he gets when he's convinced of something." He told his Dad thinking back on a few times that it had taken all of them several times just to convince Sammy that he was loved. Sighing, he got up and whispered in Sammy's ear "Time to get up sleepy head, Dad needs you." Then he turned and walked towards the door muttering about coffee and too many people for this early in the morning.

Chuckling at his eldest, John watched until Dean was out of sight then turned his attention back to Sammy. "Come on son, I need you to wake up again, we need to deal with this before it gets stuck in that over analytical brain of yours."

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Mary was running late, _very_ late and she hated that with a passion that made her big bad Marine husband shake in his boots. He convinced her to "go home, check on things, soak in the tub, and don't forget the food", in other words… go home and get some rest. She had sworn that she would only be gone an hour… two tops, then they could all eat and wait until Sammy woke up again. Yeah, that's the last time she'll take a hot bath with the bubbles that her little boy likes to play in. Rushing around the kitchen, she packed enough sandwiches for everyone that had stayed in the room, as well as for Dr. Lucas and Betty since she knew that neither had ventured far from Sammy's room, two thermos' of fresh hot coffee, and some snacks that would tide them over for a few days; because there was no way she was leaving again until Sammy came home.

Locking the door while trying to balance several bags while trying to lock the door wasn't the smartest thing she'd ever done, but she knew it wasn't the dumbest either. Having just finished turning the key, she heard what sounded to be the breaking of a twig close by. Thinking that it was an animal of some sort curious about it's new neighbors, she quickly ignored it and loaded the car with her supplies. It wasn't until she looked up and saw what she was sure was a person in the shadows next to the house, then it was gone.

Starting the car, she quickly left the house knowing that this was something that her big bad Marine and their new friends needed to deal with, because she had a little boy who needed her more than she needed answers.

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Damon was tired, he hadn't stayed up this late since he interned and his body was starting to rebel. He wanted to stay close for when Sam woke, but now he was wondering if was going to end up in the room next to his just from exhaustion. Mumbling to himself, he didn't notice anyone near him until a cup of coffee was pushed under his nose. Looking up in surprise he saw Dean looking at him with a big grin.

"Hey Doc, I knew that if _I_ needed this, then so did you. So, how's Sammy _really_ doing?"

Well that was one way of waking the young doctor up, ask him a question that would make him choke on his coffee. "What makes you think that you don't already know?" he asked the teen warily, wondering if he'd missed something; then again, as tired as he was that was more probable than not.

Dean looked at the doctor that everyone had started to accept as a friend before he smirked, "Simple, Sammy has night terrors – not nightmares, night _terrors_ – practically every night. So, tell me why he hasn't had a single one since he's been here."

Stunned, Damon looked at Dean and knew that the kid might night be at full height yet, but he'd probably still be able to give him a run for his money. Sighing, he nodded, "Yeah, I added a sedative drip to his IV, and it's obviously run its course since your brother is starting to wake up. Look, Sam has been through the wringer more times than I think that any other child could survive, but he has which tells me he's a fighter. I just wanted him to get some extra rest so he can keep doing that."

Not sure if he liked the answer, but glad to know that this doctor at least had his brother's best interest at heart he looked back at the doctor and laughed. "Oh you are in sooooo much trouble when Mom and Dad find out, they have been going _nuts_ about why Sammy hasn't been awake more." Dean laughed harder, "Yep, you're in trouble so no dessert for you… and Mom makes the best pie." He taunted Damon as he went back into Sammy's room. "HEY DAD, GUESS WHAT…" Dean told his Dad making sure that voice would carry into the hall.

Groaning, Damon finished his coffee and looked over the latest scans and blood work for Sam, hoping that Winchester wouldn't hit him too hard, especially when he heard "HE DID WHAT?" coming from the room.

Mary was almost to her little boy's room when she heard her husband bellow and Damon Lucas pale considerably. Curious about what had happened, she was just about to open the door when she heard a flurry of activity coming from the room and saw the door swing open giving her full access to view the room. Puzzled, she stood there and watched.

Caleb came flying out of the room and slid to a stop in front of Damon panting; "Run kid… RUN!"

Damon couldn't help but stare at Caleb in horror at the images of him being pummeled by the very protective father inside the room. Then his gaze fell on Mary, who although was very confused at what was going on, was probably his best chance of survival. Before he had a chance to explain, he saw John walk out of the room and whisper something to Mary which made her look at him in shock, the tell him "Let me put the bags down."

Dean watched from inside the room next to Sammy, and was having a hard time not to join in. However, he knew that his place was with his little brother – always. Although, that didn't mean that he couldn't enjoy the show. "You really need to wake up little brother, this is better than TV."

Bobby and Jim had already decided to let John and Caleb deal with this on their own, and continued looking through papers looking for signs of unnatural activity in the area; they didn't want to take anything for granted at the moment. Although, they knew that the activity in the hallway was going to quickly become a distraction.

Damon saw both John and Mary walking towards him and he felt like a battle was waging inside. Although he stood by his decision, he knew that Sam falling so deep into unconsciousness was his doing and thought about standing there and taking his punishment for not letting the Winchester's know. Then there was the other side of him that had a very strong sense of self preservation and wanted to do anything and everything he could to keep himself from getting stomped on from both John and Mary, and the other guy… Caleb… wait… what the…? He looked over at Caleb and saw the man laughing like a loon while trying to brace himself against the wall. He couldn't figure out how his potential bodily harm could be so amusing, but then again, he was the one who was about to be… hugged by Sam's mother?

John had whispered about what Damon had done and to follow his lead, which she didn't understand until she saw the look in his eyes; then she knew what she needed to do. It didn't take long before the look of terror crossed the young man's face and it took everything in them not to laugh. They watched as he struggled with what to do, and they knew that if this situation was any different they would encourage the flight scenario. When Caleb started laughing and Damon looked over at the man, they both knew that they couldn't keep it up any longer. Mary quickly went to the doctor who had saved her little boy and gave him a hug knowing that he was pretty freaked at the moment.

"Ok, what the hell people?" Damon asked, thoroughly confused by what he was seeing.

Mary looked at him and smiled. "We might not agree about being kept in the dark, but our Sammy trusts you enough to laugh about your name… you may not know it, but that's something special. However, if you ever withhold information like that again, I will personally make sure you permanently sing soprano."

Any thought of a response to that was cut short when Dean stuck his head through the doorway. "Mom, Dad… Sammy's awake, and I think he's hungry."

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AN: So, did you like? Hope so, let me know! 


	18. Chapter 18

AN: this one's for Sammygirl1967, she asked for another update today, so I figured I'd give it a shot. Hope you enjoy it!

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Sam woke to see Dean watching him very closely. Not sure why his big brother was looking at him like that he watched his big brother until Dean smiled real big and started laughing. Knowing that he always wanted to make his brother happy, Sam smiled and finally whispered "Hi Dean, can I go home now?"

Dean was happier than he had been in weeks. Sammy had not only woke up, but was staying awake, and already wanting to go back home. He was about to respond when he heard a small sound coming from Sammy and it didn't take a genius to figure out that it was the little boy's stomach protesting being ignored. "I'll be right back Sammy; I need to tell Mom and Dad!"

After poking his head through the doorway and informing the so called grown ups in the hallway that his little brother was awake and hungry, he had to quickly move out of the way to keep from being trampled by the sudden surge that moved into the room.

Sam didn't know what to think, he had only been asleep, but everyone was acting weird. Looking at everyone he couldn't remember why he was in the hospital but he knew he had to have been sick again. Sighing, he looked at his hands and didn't want to look at anyone. He would have stayed like that, except his Mommy tilted his chin up so he could see her.

"What's wrong Sammy?" Mary asked, knowing that something was on her little boy's mind and also knowing that whatever it was they needed to get rid of it soon.

"I'm sick again aren't I?" he asked feeling very sad and alone. He really didn't know why he got sick all the time, but he did know that he hated that everyone worried about him.

Shocked, Mary looked at John then to Dean before she turned back to Sammy. "Baby, what do you remember?" she asked, not liking the cold tendrils of dread that were creeping up on her.

Not understanding, Sammy looked at her and wondered what she meant. He remembered a lot of things, like why the sky is blue and that he didn't have a puppy but always wanted one, and how Dean would always tease him about being the baby of the family even though he wasn't a baby, and how he and Daddy fit in the chair just right so they could watch a movie when everyone else was sleeping. So he really didn't know what she wanted, so he waited, and waited, and waited.

Dean didn't know why Sammy was being quiet until he replayed their Mom's question in his head. Shaking his head he mentally whacked himself on the head. "What Mom meant was, what's the _last_ thing you remember before you went to sleep."

Smiling, Sam knew what she meant now and could answer that easily. "Helping Daddy fix the bathroom." He said happily then looked at his Daddy, "Did I do a good job Daddy?"

John stood there stunned for a moment and didn't have an immediate response; that had happened weeks ago. His little boy remembered hooking him in the shoulder just a couple of days ago, and now he had weeks missing? Looking back at Sammy though, he realized that his silence was being taking as a negative "Of course you did a good job Sammy! In fact, I can't wait until you're out of here and we're going to start building the new shop before the weather starts getting bad. What do you say; are you willing to help me out?"

Sammy nodded his head excitedly and couldn't wait to leave now. So intent on his excitement, he missed the concerned looks on his family and friend's faces.

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Damon was more than a little concerned with what he just heard. He knew that they were going to start asking him questions that he couldn't answer. All the lab work was starting to come back normal, and the latest scans didn't show nearly as much damage as what they had initially feared. It was almost like he was healing in ways that they had never seen before, but now they had a new dilemma, if his scans were getting better, why was his memory getting worse.

"Ok, I need to see my favorite patient for a minute, so if everyone could give me a little room?" he asked, trying to sound upbeat even though he was feeling anything but.

Sitting on the edge of the bed, he started to do the standard tests for pupil reaction and breathing, keeping Sam giggling with the silly comments he would make. However it was the last question that clenched his worry, "Sam, do you remember what my name is and what it means?" he asked holding his breath, hoping that he was wrong, that the boy in front of him would start giggling again.

"Of course, you're Dr. Lucas, right? I don't know what that means except that you're my doctor. Did I get it right anyway?" Sam asked, looking at the young doctor with wide eyes waiting to see if he guessed correctly.

Nodding, Damon smiled at Sam before he ruffled the boy's hair. "You guessed it, I'm you're doctor. Now, I hear that you're hungry so how about we see what your mom brought to eat." He said, then started to whisper "I wouldn't eat the food here if I was you, yeck!" he finished with a twisted face and crossed eyes which made Sam giggle for quite awhile.

Turning back to the Winchester's he motioned for them to go to the side of the room to talk. Making sure that Caleb was sitting with Sam, he began, "From what I can tell, Sam can't remember anything for the last month. Of course most of it he was unconscious, but the conversation that he had with you John was just a couple of days ago and he should have remembered that."

John looked at the doctor and didn't know whether he should be relieved or worried. "So, he doesn't think that he hurt me, right doc?" he asked, wanting confirmation, praying that it was so. The last month had been grueling, but if it meant that Sammy wouldn't remember anything of it, then he was ok with that, as long as his son wasn't in any harm.

Damon shook his head, "No, he doesn't remember being at the pond at all from what I can tell, and that's what worries me." When they looked at him strangely, he quickly explained. "He's the only one who can tell us who did this to him; and what's worse, that person could walk into this room and none of us would know that he was in danger."

The implications of what the doctor said echoed in each of them. They could still lose Sammy to this unknown person if they weren't careful. Now that they knew how much danger his was really in, they also knew what they had to do.

"I'll call Dr. Mayfield and let her know what's happened and we'll be home schooling Sammy for awhile. Dean, you need to keep with your normal routine, but until this is straightened out…"

"Mom, there is no way I'm leaving Sammy any longer than necessary. I'll go to school if you want, but then I'm straight home on guard duty… ruff!" Dean said, determined that if he was going to be considered a guard dog, then he was going to really act the part. No one was going to get close to his little brother again.

John was filled with pride in his family; there was no way any of them were going to let this happen again. "Caleb, Jim and Bobby had already decided to stick around until we found out what happened, so we'll have them as added security."

Jack spoke up from behind them, "Don't forget about us. Well take and pick up Dean from school when needed, and Mary I'd feel a lot better about this if you make sure to take a couple of us with you when you leave the house. Consider yourself a celebrity with an entourage." He joked, knowing that if they could get Mary to agree to having an escort, then Sammy would be covered no matter where they went.

Agreeing to the extra protection, Mary knew that there was no other choice. If her little boy was going to be safe, then they all would need to be extra careful, even in mundane cases as going to the grocery store. Smiling, she looked at Jack and quipped, "That's great Jack, because that means you get to help us keep a promise to Sammy. We told him we'd go to the Kansas City Zoo, and what better time to do it than after he's feeling better." Seeing the look on his face, she smiled even brighter and started walking back to her son with Penny right beside her giggling.

"Oh you are mean… you know how much he hates the Zoo!" she said, sure that she had tears running down her face.

The guys watched at the two women made their way back to Sammy. Dean looked at Jack and smiled, "So Uncle Jack, when are you going to learn not to push Mom's buttons? You know she hates feeling controlled."

"You are enjoying this way too much kiddo." Jack told his 'nephew' knowing indeed how much Mary hates being dictated to, and also knowing that he got off lightly. "I hate the Zoo." He mumbled to himself as he went back to one of the chairs and sulked.

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Denise Chase sat at her desk and strummed her fingers on her desk. She had been informed of Samuel's miraculous rescue, then convenient illness that would keep him out of her class until it was deemed "appropriate for him to continue with his studies". Until then he would be home schooled and that made her even madder than anything else she had heard that day.

She didn't believe one thing that she was told by her boss Dr. Mayfield; after all she was friends with the Winchester's so obviously they have some sort of agreement to keep Samuel from being evaluated by a real psychiatrist, and not their family friend who no doubtedly would do anything to keep the boy's parents happy.

Oh she had heard everything about the Winchester's before she moved to Lawrence and at first she thought that she was being fooled, but now that she had actually met them, she knew that that person was right… something had to be done about the Winchester's, and she was starting with little Sammy Winchester. After all, Aunt Barbara wouldn't lie.

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AN: And? How was it? 


	19. Chapter 19

AN: Well, I have to give credit where it's due... once again Sammygirl1967 has given me the encouragement to do what I needed to do... update 3 stories in 1 day. Thanks SG, I needed the boost! ;)

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Knowing that Sam would be safer at home than at the hospital, Damon prepared the release orders making sure that a list of the medicines he would need to take was attached. He knew it was for the best, but he couldn't but feel like he was going to miss that crazy family. Helping them get Sam settled into the car and watching them drive away he also couldn't help but feel relieved, 'Now maybe we'll get some peace and quiet.' He thought as he walked back into the ER praying for a quiet day, a gunshot wound wouldn't be too bad.

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Mary had insisted that Sammy be put on the couch until they could figure out other arrangements, after all, he wouldn't be able to stay in the second bedroom because it was so closed in and he couldn't stay in the loft until he built his strength up again. Tucking in her little boy she smiled knowing that despite the brave front he had given, he was exhausted from the ride home. Brushing the bangs out of his eyes, she watched as he fell asleep then gave him a light kiss on the forehead before gathering up the rest of the supplies and walked into the kitchen.

John, Jim and Caleb were sitting at the table trying to figure out their next move. It was obvious that whoever hurt Sammy had known him well enough that he hadn't yelled out before he was attacked. That would have narrowed the list down, but they had to take in account all the people that he knew in town. It was a daunting task, but they knew it needed to be done since the little boy had no idea how he got in the hospital in the first place.

Dean sat by Sammy and watched him sleep. He had listened very carefully to Damon's orders about his little brother's care. Most important was; plenty of rest. Apparently being in a coma takes a lot of you. He knew that while Sammy was sleeping that wouldn't be hard, it was when he was awake that was going to make everything fun. Not too many people knew it, but Sammy liked to play outside close to the house. The main reason why they hadn't known about the pond was because Sammy had always found something close by to hold his attention and make some sort of adventure out of it. Wanting to stay close to his little brother, but still wanting to know what was going on, he rearranged himself to hear what was going on.

Making a quick list of people Sammy knew, they divided it up between the three hunters and let them go investigate where those people were the morning Sammy got hurt. Since they knew that whoever had done it had to be an adult just from the trauma, they had been able to narrow it down, but were still worried that someone would fall through the cracks.

"Too bad he doesn't remember who did it." John said, thinking only of finding the person who dared to harm his little boy.

Everyone stopped and looked at him, "I know where you're coming from John, but you have to admit, he seemed happy not knowing." Bobby said not sure if this amnesia of Sam's was a blessing or a curse, but happy to know that the little boy was getting a small amount of peace regardless.

Realizing what he said, John stood there in shock. "Oh my God, I didn't mean…"

"No one thinks that you meant anything by it John," Mary said, trying to make her husband feel better. "we should just look at this as a blessing. This way Sammy can enjoy himself and get better quicker."

Dean smiled at his parents, they could be so funny. They hadn't figured out that as long as Sammy knew that they were around he was happy, that was the only thing that mattered to him; that they were there. Turning back to his brother, Dean smiled and whispered in his ear. "Don't worry little brother, we're not going _anywhere_."

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Betty was happy to see that Sam had gone home. Just knowing that he was in the same building right now upset her more than anything. Hearing the little boy ask where Zack was had broken her heart. She couldn't be angry with Sam, he had obviously just been a messenger; unfortunately she didn't have the strength to hear the message… not right now anyway.

Looking at the clock, she knew that Damon would be done with his shift soon and if she timed it just right, she could probably convince him to eat breakfast with her; she really needed to discuss this with him, especially knowing that the boy would probably continue to be one of his patients.

Walking into the ER she made her way to one of the triage cubicles knowing that she'd find him there since she hadn't seen him on the floor. Finding him dozing with his feet propped up and she couldn't help but see him as a little boy instead of the young man he was.

Shoving his feet off the desk she raised her voice, "GET UP LAZYBONES!" then laughed as he fell out of his chair trying to get over his surprise.

"What the… Betty? What's going on?" he asked trying to rub the sleep out of his eyes and shake the fuzzies out of his head. 'Jeez I haven't felt this muddled since… well, let's not think about _that_ shall we?' he thought while looking at the woman in front of him. He knew something was up because usually she'd play decoy when he was catching a nap, she must want something if she's pulling something like this.

Seeing that she had his undivided attention she announced, "Your shift over, so you get the utmost privilege of taking me out for breakfast."

'Hmmm… yep, something is definitely up.' Looking at her closely, he saw that she had gone home and changed which meant that she wasn't talking about the hospital cafeteria. "Ok, bacon and eggs, or Belgium waffles with blueberry syrup?" He couldn't help but groan when she said "waffles", because he knew that meant trouble. She never wanted to go to the Beaumont unless it was something _really_ big. "Give me ten to change, you're driving though."

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Sam woke to see Dean watching him closely and that made him happy. He knew that he shouldn't be a baby, but he knew that everything would be alright as long as Dean was close by. Watching his big brother smile, he knew that today would be a really good day.

"Hey there Sammy! Mom was just making us chocolate chip pancakes, how about it, are you hungry?" Dean asked hoping to hear a yes as a response, when he only got silence he looked closely at Sammy and recognized that look. 'He can't make up his mind.' He thought, wondering how he should handle the situation, then he came up with an idea. "Hey, how about you sit with us, and if you're hungry you can eat, but if not you can still keep us company."

Sam thought about whether or not he was hungry, and had no idea. So far, his tummy was asleep and he had no idea how to wake it up. When Dean mentioned keeping them company at the table, he was excited. 'That means I'm ok. They wouldn't want me out of bed if I was really sick.' He thought as he worked his way out of the covers.

By the time Dean helped Sammy to the table, their mom had already set out plates of pancakes and was filling their glasses with juice. Looking up Sammy saw their Dad coming to the table, and he couldn't help but feel happy that he was there. He didn't know why Mommy and Daddy looked worried, but he knew that they were happy he was there; he just _knew_ it. So, even though his tummy was still sleeping, he ate a pancake and listened to everyone talk to each other. It wasn't long before he was starting to drift off until he heard his name.

"Sammy's going to help me build the foundation to the shop, aren't you Sport? Mary, you should have seen how well he helped me in the bathroom. Don't worry Dean, we'll make sure there's still plenty for you to do, isn't that right Sammy?"

He knew his Daddy was teasing Dean, but he couldn't help but feel bad. He was going to get to spend all day with Mommy and Daddy, and Dean was going to have to go to school and be bored all day. He knew that his brother didn't like school, except when he played ball for his school. They had talked about that when they went to visit…

Sammy jumped up from his chair and ran to the phone. "IZZY… she's going to be worried. I promised I'd write and I haven't!" he exclaimed, knowing that his friend would be really worried about him.

Mary didn't understand at first and remembered that they hadn't told Sammy yet. "Sammy, baby… look at me." She said as she knelt down in front of him. "Izzy is coming this week. She was sick for awhile, otherwise she would have been here sooner."

Putting the receiver down, Sammy looked at everyone for a moment then asked, "Did she have what I have?"

Shaking her head, Mary was about to explain that she couldn't get what he has when he picked up the phone again and insisted, "Tell her she can't come…I'm sick…she'll get it…she can't come…" he repeated over and over until he was fighting to get a breath and couldn't stand anymore.

John saw his little boy work himself into a frenzy about his friend, and he suddenly understood that it was a good thing that Sammy didn't remember what happened, otherwise he would have to face this every time he thought about the person who had tried to kill him. Watching his wife and eldest son comfort Sammy hardened his resolve that no one would hurt him again; EVER! Picking up the phone, he called the number that Caleb gave him. When he heard the phone pick up, John said quickly and quietly "Get Here!" before he hung up and took his position to soothe Sammy back to sleep, letting his breathing calm again, and watching the little boy in his arms feel safe while he drifted into his dreams.

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AN: I know, I know... not enough action... but we really don't want Sammy to become more shell shocked than he is already do we? Didn't think so! Let me know how you liked it. 


	20. Chapter 20

Dean had been more than a little anxious to get to school, which surprised his parents more than what they had wanted to admit. He knew that someone had to have some information about what was going on, and opposite of popular belief; kids knew more than what they said. So against his heart's wishes, he gave Sammy a slight brush against his bangs and snuck a light kiss on his forehead while he still slept and raced his Mom to the car to get to school early for a 'special project'. Yep, Operation Save Sammy has begun.

Looking around the halls before school started was more than a little odd for Dean, and he got more than a few weird looks for it too. Finally, he gave up and walked to a girl that had more books in her arms than he thought he'd ever read and just _asked_, "Have you seen Scotty Timbers?" Of course he had to repeat himself a couple of more times before the awestruck girl could get the whole answer out. He knew he was able to charm certain girls, but he had to wonder if it extended to _all_ girls… 'maybe I should conduct my _own_ experiment', he thought before going the direction he was sent.

He had known Scotty since he was in the first grade and couldn't remember why they weren't really friends anymore. The way he remembered it, they were pretty close and made sure to stick together during recess and lunch every day for the first couple of years, then one day they didn't. Shaking his head, he made his way down another hallway until he found the person he was looking for. "Scotty, I need your help!" he called out hoping that it would get the other boy's attention so he wouldn't have to chase him down the rest of the day. Unfortunately Scotty took one look at him and took off in the other direction.

"Yatzee!" Dean exclaimed as he chased after the boy, wondering what was going on and why he was having to run after someone that he just wanted to get some help from.

He almost lost Scotty, but the other boy's shoe squeaked just as Dean was about to pass the empty classroom. Backtracking the few steps, Dean opened the door, turned on the light, and looked around. He couldn't believe what he was seeing, desks were in their place undisturbed, but there was nothing else there. Looking around the room he shook his head. 'You have got to be kidding me.' He thought as he walked across the room and started opening cabinet doors until he finally found one that wasn't locked and had Scotty cramped on the bottom shelf trying to do an impersonation of the Invisible Man.

"Dude, I can see you!" Dean said while rolling his eyes, "Look, I need your help and I was told that you're the one to go to."

Scotty looked at Dean weighing his options. On the one hand he could really use the favor that Dean would owe him, but on the other hand, he really liked all of his organs where they were. Taking a moment to think, he finally looked at Dean again still not moving from his spot. "I heard you have a new brother." It wasn't a question, just a statement of fact that took Dean by surprise for a moment.

"Yeah", Dean said, his eyes brightening for a moment. "His name's Sam and he's pretty cool for a little guy."

Watching Dean talk about his little brother made Scotty think for a moment, then held his hand out for Dean to help him out of his predicament. "Ok, I'll help, but I'm hoping you're not going to ask me to help with what I think you are." He said, taking Dean totally by surprise.

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Mary had walked back into the house and looked over at her little boy then to John who was sitting at the table. "Should he be sleeping still?" she asked, knowing that with everything that had been happening recently they shouldn't take anything for granted.

John looked up from his paper and smiled. "Relax; I just got off the phone with Damon. He said with all the excitement of coming home, then getting worried about Izzy he's probably just worn out. Although I'm thinking about asking him about that decongestant that he prescribed, it's kept Sammy asleep all night without even one nightmare."

Smiling sweetly at her husband she couldn't help but wonder about him. Oh, she knew his heart was in the right place, but they couldn't resort to drugging their children for every problem they faced. "Uh huh… and of course it has nothing at all to do with the fact that the instructions say 'Take at bedtime ONLY', right?" she told him knowingly.

Surprised, John walked over and looked at the instructions again. "Well I'll be… you don't think…"

"That he is a good friend who wants our little boy to get better as fast as he can? Yes, that is _exactly_ what I think. Now, what about you? That was a bad case of heartburn last night, are you sure you're alright?"

Walking back to the table he picked up the remaining amount of his coffee and smirked, "I guess I walked right into that one. I'm fine Mary, it came then it went." He knew that she wasn't convinced, so decided to compromise. "I tell you what… if it happens again, I go to the doctor for a complete physical. I won't even argue with you about it, alright?"

"Ok Daddy!" came a little voice from the couch. When they looked over they saw their tousled haired little boy looking at them with his big hazel eyes as if he didn't have a care in the world. "Can I help you today?"

Smiling, both John and Mary sat next to their Sammy and nodded, "Of course you can Sport, how about you eat some breakfast then get dressed. If you still feel up to that, then we'll go out and take a look at the spot for the new building." John said, hoping that being outdoors so soon to him getting out of the hospital was ok.

Reading John's mind, Mary went and called Damon, double checking to make sure that they wouldn't be hurting Sammy inadvertently. Hanging up, she subtly gave John a big thumbs up and winked, knowing that today was going to be _their_ day, and nothing was going to ruin it if she could help it. "Ok you two. I'm going to fix Sammy some breakfast, John why don't you help him get ready for the day."

"Come on kiddo," John said as he lifted Sammy up into his arms "let's get ready to get dirty!"

Giggling at his Daddy being funny, Sam let himself be carried around even though he wasn't a baby. He knew that Dean was at school already, he remembered his brother trying to be quiet when he left; but Dean was hardly ever quiet. Smiling, he watched his Daddy make funny faces trying to keep him happy. He knew that they were hiding something, but he didn't know what, and right now he didn't care; he just wanted everyone to stay the way they were right now.

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Dean looked at Scotty warily but was really hoping that he could help find out who was trying to hurt Sammy. It wasn't until Scotty spoke again that he knew that he had hit the jackpot. "Look, I don't know who hurt your little brother, but I know that something weird is going on around here. Those bozo's the McMillan brothers were bragging that they had everything under control and that their mom was going to get out of the hospital soon just as soon as their cousin was able to arrange a few things."

"What things?" he asked, somehow knowing that this was what he was waiting for. "Who's their cousin?"

Scotty shook his head, "I don't know Dean, I swear. I only heard them by accident; I'm not exactly in their circle of friends you know." Seeing that Dean was getting more agitated by the second he volunteered, "Whoever it is would have had to just moved here since their dad had died, so I bet that I can find out."

"How's that Scotty? You got a crystal ball that no one knows about?" Dean asked half heartedly, his mind suddenly on his little brother. _Why did I agree to go to school and leave Sammy?_

"Uh…_No, _but I do have a computer at home and can hack into just about anything."

That got Dean's attention, he'd heard rumors that Scotty had become some sort of computer geek, but since he never talked to him anymore he couldn't have said if it was true or not. Now he was glad that he gave Missy Walker the five bucks to find out who had the most info about what was happening in town. "So, you willing to find out for me?"

Thinking a moment Scotty hesitated then grinned at Dean. "You know, I think I'm about to have one of my monster headaches… yes, yes, I feel it coming on. I think I need to go home and lie down." As he walked away, Scotty turned back at Dean saying "Come by after school, I'll have what you need by then."

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Bobby and Caleb were waiting for Jim to show up. They had been going over the information they had gathered, and were getting more and more irritated as the day went on. Everyone in the town had something to say alright, unfortunately none of it helped them one bit. Knowing that Missouri had been gone on some sort of retreat to 'get her mind straight' they didn't even bother stopping by to pick her brain, but that didn't stop them from wishing she was there.

Jim walked in the small café in the middle of town and sat with his friends seeing that they didn't have any luck. Knowing that they all had been gone from the Winchester's too long; they quickly compared notes then agreed to get back. Since people knew they were there, it made more sense to enter the property from the main road and what they saw upon pulling up made them all smile.

John and Sam were measuring out the shop area, which would have gone a lot quicker except that a certain little boy kept seeing a spot that was an animal's home, so they would have to move everything a little more this way or that until John came to the conclusion that at the rate they were going, the shop _might_ be built sometime after Sammy went to college.

"Silly Daddy, I'm not going to college." Sam said picking up on the tail end of his Daddy's thoughts not realizing that what he heard in his head wasn't what was spoken.

Looking between his son and the other men, John didn't know what to say at first. Trying to ignore the fact that his little boy knew what he was thinking, but finally asked, "Sammy, why aren't you going to college?"

Looking up from the bee that he was watching he casually said, "Because I won't be here. Besides, only smart people go to college." Feeling that he answered the question, he went back to watching the bee flitter back and forth from flower to flower until finally it flew away. Not seeing anything else that caught his attention at the moment, he looked at his Daddy and asked, "Are we done Daddy? Someone is coming to visit."

Stunned, the men looked at the little boy and decided the best course of action would be to get back to the cabin and find out what was going on. Jim looked worried and kept watching Sam while the others kept watch to make sure that there were no threats close by.

Mary looked up and saw John walk in with a worried look on his face. Sammy quickly ran up to her and gave her a big hug before asking for a cookie, then ran into the living room to curl up on the couch and pull a book out from under his seat. Jim, Bobby and Caleb watched him in fascination as he quickly tuned everything else out and stayed quite content with eating his cookie and reading a book that he had brought back from Izzy's.

John knew the expression on Mary's face, and he couldn't get rid of the feeling that something big was going on. Motioning for the other men to join him, they sat at the table while Mary composed herself.

"Ms. Chase just called, she will be here in less than half an hour to 'oversee my teaching plan' for Sammy. Can you believe that? I've already called Dr. Mayfield to let her know what is going on, because this is ridiculous. Who does this woman think she is?" she asked, not really knowing what was making her feel that her family was in trouble, but there was no way that she was just going to sit there and take it.

Looking at everyone in turn, Caleb wondered about the sudden interest in Sam. This teacher didn't show up even once while he was in the hospital and now she's going to turn up out of the blue? Something was going up.

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Dean knew that his Aunt Penny was going to pick him up after school, only because his Mom and Dad were nervous about letting only one person stay with Sammy until the person who hurt his little brother was caught. The only way that his Mom agreed to take him to school was the challenge that she _could_ leave Sammy for more than a minute at a time. Apparently they were going to have to do baby steps in that department.

Asking to stop in and check on a friend, Dean was standing in front of Scotty's house waiting for someone to open the door. After the third time ringing the door bell, Scotty opened and quickly thrust a stack of papers into his hand. "You didn't get this from me, and as far as I'm concerned this didn't happen." Then the door was shut in his face.

Puzzled, Dean stood there for a moment and looked at the door in front of him. Tired of seeing the same scenery, he made his way back to Penny and the girls while glancing at the stack of papers in his hand. The list of people who had moved to Lawrence since Gerald McMillan's death, all courtesy of the phone company, wasn't too long but it did make an impression that maybe his small town wasn't so small after all. Smiling to himself, he continued to look at the pages until he stopped at another page; it looked to be a family tree and it had Barbara McMillan's name circled. 'I would have seen it, jeez.' He thought, still looking at the papers in his hand. It wasn't until he noticed Mrs. McMillan's maiden name and the name next to hers that everything clicked into place and he ran the rest of the way to the car.

"Hurry Aunt Penny, we have to get home… now!"

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AN: Ok... not so much a cliffie... but maybe a little bit of suspense? Let me know if you still like it. 


	21. Chapter 21

AN: Well, it's getting to that point... either stretch it out, or do a sequel... any suggestions?

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They felt the change before they saw it, Sammy was nervous and it was coming out in a totally different way. The dishes on the table started to tremble at first, then started to dance slightly along the surface, it wasn't until a couple of pictures had fallen off the fireplace mantle that they chanced a glance at the boy on the couch and saw him sitting straight up staring straight ahead. As they all ran to his side, they heard the car door and prayed that it was Dean coming home. When there was a knock on the door they knew that it had to be Ms. Chase and her timing was horrendous as they watched the tremors increase until the fixtures on the wall started to loosen. As the knocks got more insistent, the stronger the tremors became. Running out the back door, Mary could only pray that her idea worked.

"Ms. Chase! How are you, please come over to the garden; I was just getting things ready to start planning the science experiments." Mary said with as much false enthusiasm as she could muster, hoping that the other woman wouldn't insist on seeing Sammy today.

Denise couldn't help but feel unwelcome; how rude! "Mrs. Winchester, as much as I would _love_ to talk to you about your backwoods idea of education, I must insist on speaking to Sammy about the results of his tests. Now, if you could allow me to do my job." She said, wanting nothing more than to be able to get the brat and leave.

Mary had been called many things, but 'backwoods' wasn't one of them. Taking a deep breath to keep from knocking Sammy's _former_ teacher out, she allowed herself only one moment to revel in the idea of what it would feel like to make the woman in front of her scream. "Ms. Chase, I understand that you were not raised here, and I also understand your enthusiasm in your first assignment as teacher, however, you are the one who _insisted_ on coming here for a totally _different_ reason. I should inform you that I have already left a message with Dr. Mayfield about your visit, and with your reaction to that I can tell this is not really an official visit, so I will ask you once and only once; what are you doing here?"

Understanding where she had gone wrong, Denise smiled as she pulled a gun from her bag. "To finish what I started of course." She said motioning Mary to the door of the cabin.

Knowing that her only chance laid with the people inside the cottage, Mary slowly walked to the door and hoped that she would be fast enough to stop this madwoman. Reaching out as if to open the door, she swung around and grabbed the gun pointing it down and was horrified when the gun discharged, sending a bullet into the ground grazing her shoe. 'At least I wasn't barefoot' she thought as she continued to wrestle the gun from the other woman.

"Damn you! Quit hiding the freak, I know what it is – she told me! She knew and you had her committed, you should be the ones locked away for hiding that… that… creature in there!" Denise was shouting at Mary while still trying to take back the gun.

Hearing those awful things about her little boy made Mary see red, and she took a small step back letting go of the gun.

Smiling in triumph, Denise was just about to re-aim when she felt the cold barrel of a gun at the base of her skull. Staying stock still she asked, "Who are you?"

Stepping forward, Mary answered, "My son's uncle!" as she punched Denise Chase in the face effectively knocking her to the ground unconscious.

Looking up at Caleb, Mary gave him a quick smile then ran inside the house to check on her little boy. Upon entering, she did not like what she saw.

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Dean had a bad feeling, he was nervous and couldn't sit still, which he knew was driving his Aunt Penny crazy. 'Something's wrong, I just know it.' He thought, as he tried to reach out to see if he could feel Sammy, but what he felt was different, almost distorted and that worried him more than the thought of Barbara McMillan's sister going after his brother did.

Penny knew something was wrong just by the way Dean was sitting. He had never been a patient child, even when he was smaller, he couldn't sit through a whole movie. Now though his tension level was off the charts and she knew the girls felt it too. Hoping that everything was ok at the cottage, she accelerated more anyway, _just_ to make Dean feel better. _Really, it has nothing to do with how worried she was… really._

Pulling into the small driveway and following it to the cottage, she could see an unfamiliar car. Before she had a chance to ask who it was, Dean was out the door and in the house leaving her to wonder what had happened.

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Mary sat in one of her rocking chairs singing to Sammy who continued to stare into space, not responding to anything or anyone. She had hoped that he would have snapped out of it by now, but as she heard another car pull up she knew that the next person that walked in the door was the only chance of pulling her little boy out of whatever protection bubble he drew himself into.

The door flew open and Dean rushed in with a wild look on his face as he took in the destruction that had wrecked havoc inside. Seeing his mom had made him feel relieved at first, until he saw his little brother. Walking over to them, he ignored everything else in the room. This was what he felt, this was what was wrong. Not bothering to look at anyone else but his Sammy, Dean told them what he knew. "Ms. Chase is Barbara McMillan's sister, she moved here right before school started. I think that Sammy remembered that it was her that attacked him and that he saw what she still had planned for him."

"What did she have plan son?" John asked, wanting… no, needing as much information as possible.

Shaking his head Dean looked over at his dad, "I don't know, I just get impressions off Sammy dad, I can't read his mind." Turning his attention back to Sammy, Dean picked him up off their mom's lap and made himself comfortable on the couch with his little brother nestled with him then proceeded to read aloud the book Sammy was reading. He had no idea what language he was butchering, but the pictures showed dragons so he figured that was all he needed to know until Sammy was back to himself and could read it to him.

Jim watched with sorrowful eyes and couldn't help but let them know his suspicions. "I fear that our little Sam has taken on too much. He may be too far for us to reach this time."

Dean didn't hesitate; he paused in the story just long enough to ground out "Get OUT!" before he continued the story that he knew Sammy had been sneaking peeks at when he was supposed to be sleeping.

Knowing that the sentiment was shared by the other Winchester's, Jim moved towards the door. Taking a quick look back at the boys, he knew that it was probably better this way. After all, if Sammy couldn't read him, then maybe the boy could rest easier instead of having to worry about what might be.

Penny stepped to the side to let the priest open the door, then let the girls quietly go to Sam and sit next to him until he woke up from their nightmare.

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AN: so... what'd you think? Let me know if you're up to a sequel, too! 


	22. Chapter 22

AN: Ok everyone... here's the last chapter of Whole Lotta Love... DON'T PANIC!!!... the sequel 'Heartbreaker' will be up and running soon! Hope you enjoy!!!

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Dean continued reading, not sure when his little brother was going to come back to them, but knowing that he _would_ be coming back. He didn't know what Pastor Jim's problem was though, but right now he had bigger issues; mainly that he had no idea what he was reading or if Sammy was understanding a word of it. As he continued, he glanced at Sammy's face and noted that his little brother's eyes were still blank so he tightened his hold around the little body to share what comfort he could and kept talking knowing that everything would be ok – it had to be.

Mary watched as Dean checked on Sammy then nestled him closer to increase his sense of security. She felt so helpless at the moment and had no idea what she should do, so she started to tidy up the house knowing that her little boy would be terrified of what he had done when he woke up. As she straightened the pictures on the wall, she looked closely at the one that they all had posed for when they first moved into the cottage. She had automatically put it in a frame and mounted it on the mantle over the fireplace, not looking too closely at it, but now that she took a moment to really examine it she saw what she had missed before; two figures on either side of the family, both almost ghostly and could be considered a trick of the light until you looked at their faces. Smiling slightly she whispered, "I know you're here, I see that you're close, please help my boy come back, please!"

Jessica sat and listened to Dean, not knowing what he was saying, but knowing that Sammy did. As she listened and watched Sammy she noticed something different. Not wanting to say anything until she was sure, she quickly got up and walked around to the back of the couch and looked at Sammy closely. When she confirmed the tear that was making a path on Sammy's cheek, she tapped Dean's shoulder and showed him hoping that it was a good sign.

John watched his family and couldn't help but feel like it was falling apart. Mary was at the fireplace and looked to be praying, while Dean continued to read a book that looked older than all the occupants in the room put together, while Sammy continued to stare into space as if there was something else so much more interesting just out of their line of sight. He was just about to get up from the table when he saw Jessica touch Dean's shoulder. Walking over to see what was happening, he saw the first tear, followed by another, then another. Whatever was on his little boy's heart was tearing him apart.

Dean put the book down and repositioned Sammy in his arms to hold him close and started to whisper words of encouragement into his ear. He saw his mom turn around and see the tears streaming down Sammy's face, and when he looked up he saw his dad watching with concern. Knowing that Bobby and Caleb may have been quiet but were still there gave him more confidence about having 'hunters' around his little brother.

Aunt Penny, Jessica and Mariah gathered around to give their support, and Dean could only continue what he was doing, hoping that it was enough.

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Sam remembered everything that had happened, and he didn't know what to do. Every time he tried to wake up, his head would hurt some more and another scene of what Ms. Chase was going to do to him flashed in front of him. He had started to get used to that, when another group of pictures would flash by hurting him even more; pictures of swords clashing, and flames growing brighter with screams yelling out in horror. He didn't like fire, he knew that; it scared him, but he didn't know why. So, why was he seeing it now?

Looking around he couldn't see anything except darkness. He couldn't find his way home, and that scared him more than the pictures he saw, more than the fire he felt. He just wanted to go home and stay with his family, but he had no idea how.

As more pictures ran through his brain, repeating themselves until he thought his head would explode; he started to feel a whisper against him. Not knowing what it was at first, he wanted to get away from it, wanted to keep away until he could find a way back. Then it became more insistent, more familiar, more… Dean! Dean was his way home, all he had to do was follow, but it hurt. Not knowing what to do, he waited until finally, the insistent whispering became a slight buzzing against him. That he did know, Dean was upset, worried. He had to find his way back, he had to make Dean better, he had too…

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Watching Sammy slowly blink that first time was the happiest moment for so many people in the room, just knowing that he was trying to come back made them feel lighter. It took a few minutes before the next blink came, but then it was like a door had been opened. One moment there was nothing, then Sammy was crying and holding his head with one hand and pressing his other hand into his eyes, all the while saying how sorry he was and he didn't mean to do it.

Dean held his little brother close and refused to let go even when both of his parents tried to pick the boy up out of his arms. No one and nothing was going to take Sammy from him at the moment, no way.

Finally, Sammy's hoarse cries turned into hiccups and then a sigh when he heard Dean's heartbeat under his ear. Moving his head slightly, he saw his Daddy and at first was afraid, then he saw the smile that broke out on his face. It took another moment to realize that his Daddy was talking to him.

"It's ok Sammy, you didn't hurt me; I promise. We were so scared for you though."

Joining in, Sammy heard and felt Dean's voice, "You sure did kiddo, don't run off like that again ok? There's no way that you could ever get us to stop taking care of you, we love you too much."

He watched his Mommy as she reached to him, and felt her hand on his cheek. "That's right sweetie, we love you and if anything happened to you, we'd be lost."

Taking a deep breath, Sammy felt what he what he had missed before. They really did love him, and he could see the truth in them. Finally, he smiled and looked at Dean, "You really don't know how to read about dragons do you Dean?" he asked before breaking out in giggles and snuggling further into his big brother, knowing that he was home.

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AN: Well, did you enjoy? I hope so... don't forget to keep an eye out for Heartbreaker! 


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